Children's National Medical Center: Take 2...

Today we had to take Charlie in to have a cyst checked out on his nether regions.  This involved us returning to the Children's Hospital Clinics.  Strangely, we ended up in the SAME room that we had been in for William's visits!  Weird.  It was dejavu all over again.  Thankfully Charlie was fine, but it was an exciting visit because the fire alarms went off and we all had to evacuate the building.  William loved seeing the firetrucks arrive and got to talk to a real firefighter in all his garb.  He was thrilled.  Charlie was very patient with all the poking and prodding and was kind enough not to pee on the Doctors.  At this point it is a wait and see situation, and hopefully it will just fix itself as he grows. 

Charlie...

Help!  This crazy sun has been watching me all day!



Let's Build A Bear...

 These are in reverse order.  Here is Charlie enjoying his new friend...

 William gave both Bunnies an air bath to get rid of any loose fuzzies...

 Charlie contemplates his bunny's  heart...

 Charlie watches while William puts the heart into his bunny...

 The insertion of the heart...

 William went through the entire "heart procedure" that they force you to do at Build A Bear, and at his age he didn't feel like a schmuck!

William decided on bunnies for he and Charlie to bring home. 

When I found out I was having another baby I really wanted to take Will to Build a Bear and get matching animals for him and the baby.  I decided I would wait till the baby was actually here, so it would seem real.  Today was the day.  I somehow avoided buying all the excess stuff (read: outfits and accessories) for these bunnies and walked out without a ridiculous bill.  A miracle at Build a Bear!  Will and Charlie both love their bunnies and Will has been very interested in matching Charlie lately so this was right up his alley. 

3 Months!

This young lad turned 3 months today.  We went to the Dr first thing this morning for his Hep B vaccine and a recheck on his reflux.  He was a healthy 14 lbs even and  24 and a 5/8th inches long.  He is certainly growing.  He is getting much more vocal these days and much more mobile.  He can squirm around in his crib a surprising amount and we are never sure where we will find him when we get him up after a nap.  He is supporting his head really well and is starting to grab toys with more success.  I am still so in love with this baby.  I am trying to treasure every moment with him, since he is my last.  He is still sleeping fitfully, and honestly, I am not sure what to do about it.  We are going to put him in his own room soon, and I am hoping that will help.  We'll see!

Are We in Philly? Cause' I'm Feelin' Some Brotherly Love!

I love these guys.  They are so sweet together and William has fallen into the role of big brother seamlessly.  I just melt when I see the two of them interact.  I know it won't always be this way, but at least I will have these pictures to look at while they are both in time out for fighting...LOL!

Fun While Dangling: Part 2....

Charlie hanging out in the excersaucer...

Will at the same age, hanging out in the same way...

           

Charlie always seems amazed when William comes over to "Help"...

I have started putting Charlie in the excersaucer for longer and longer periods and today he actually reached out and made contact with a toy and seemed to have developed the ability to do it with purpose.  It is so fun to see him developing and changing.  I am just not a fan of the newborn stage.  I like it so much more when they can do stuff and interact.  Seeing these pictures brought back memories of the pictures of William in the excersaucer at the same age.  The pictures show how different they look.  Sometimes I think they look a lot alike, but these pictures show otherwise.  William loves to come and mess with Charlie when he is dangling in there, Charlie seems to find him endlessly entertaining.  It is so fun to watch them interact! 
In other news, my Aunt and Uncle came to visit for 10 days, and the kids had a great time getting to know them.  William entertained them with his craziness and took lots of walks with Aunt Tissa.  He was loving all the extra attention.  It was great for me to have an extra hand too.  Charlie is a much higher need baby than William ever was, so the more people willing to hold him, the better.  Thursday Charlie will be 3 months old!  I can hardly believe it!  It seems like it has gone by in a flash, and yet, it also seems like he has always been here.  I am busy these days, changing the office into Charlie's nursery, and setting the office up in the playroom.  I am also busily trying to get organized for our trip to Maine and New Hampshire.  I am so excited to have a few days at the sea....I always feel so fantastic after a trip to the beach!

A Totem Pole of Fun...

Catch Up!!

 Aunt Molly sent Will these fantastic Fireman Sam pajamas...

Will and Charlie snuggle before bedtime...

Auntie Tissa came and she and Charlie have fully bonded!

 Charlie's room is being prepared, so Tricia and I planned on painting him some pictures that match his bedding...See quilt example above.

 Tricia traced the quilt design and placed the images to fit on parchment...

 I then traced over the parchment which we put face down on the prepared canvas...

 We then painted them to match the quilt, and VOILA!  Pictures that match his bedding perfectly!

 So Cute!!

They turned out so cute and I love them!  They will look great in his nursery!

Berry Pickin'...

 Will riding out to the fields in the wheel barrow...

 Charlie hides from the sun in the bjorn, between that and the sun hat, you can't even see him!

 The blackberries looked better than the blueberries, so we came home with a lot more of these...

 These bushes were young, so the yield was pretty small and crummy...

Charlie got really hot and fussy, so we packed it in pretty quickly...

Will gave up picking and waited to be pushed back to the car...It was SO hot.  90 degrees, and no shade.  Pretty miserable....

9 Weeks...

Charlie is now 9 weeks old.  I love seeing him grow, and change week by week...

Summer Nights...

We went to the park tonight, and William had a ball.  Charlie got the chance to get in on the action, but seemed less excited by it all.  We love these long summer evenings, I just wish it weren't quite so hot and buggy.