All the Way

She did it! Olive slept through the night for the first time. And none of that "waking up at 4am counts as through the night, right?" stuff, either. She really did it. Went to sleep for the night at 7:45pm, didn't wake up until around 6:15 this morning.

It was awesome. (My boobs didn't really think so. They were angry and Hulk-like and refused to let me sleep on my side after about 5am. Oh, and then when she finally got to nurse and relieve me, she ate and ate andateandateandate until she could not possibly fit another drop in. Then she burped and spewed approximately 30 ounces of milky goo all over me.)

But seriously. Olive's timing was pretty spectacular. We spent the weekend visiting friends in Springfield, and Milo decided not to sleep, really, while we were there. I was up many, many times in the night with him (and Olive), retrieving pacis and tucking Kitty in next to him. And though the trip was super fun, Andrew and I were tired and very much appreciated the solid night of sleep.

Speaking of Springfield, our trip was great. First time the four of us visited people who do not have children, so we had to remember everything, from wipes to sippy cups to toys to burp cloths. And we did it. And Milo had a great time. We toured Fantastic Caverns, where touching the wet ceiling was a big hit, as was riding unbuckled in any sort of vehicle. Side note: I do not recommend trying to nurse your baby on this tour. Not easy. We also went to the biggest Bass Pro this side of the Mississippi (or anywhere, possibly). Milo loved the turtles, the fish, the water, and all the stuffed bears. Great fun for toddlers. We ate delicious food (hello, blueberry-strawberry muffins), watched terrible movies (Action Jackson, anyone?) and generally had a fabulous time. All was well, except for the part where Milo wouldn't go to bed until we were with him in the room, so he stayed up until well past 10:00. Not great, but he remained in surprisingly good spirits considering.

I'm wondering if Olive's great night of sleeping was due in part to all the newness of a trip out of town. Who knows? I'm crossing my fingers she repeats her magnificent sleeping performance tonight.

Three weeks ago...

...Milo had his 2nd birthday party. And despite the unexpected heat, it was a great success.

When I started planning an outdoor party, I worried that it would be too cold. The weather in late March is incredibly unpredictable around here. (To demonstrate this point: my wedding anniversary is April 14, and it SNOWED the day before we got married.) However, it turned out to be almost too hot. The temperature pushed 90 degrees, and since few trees had any leaves, the shade was minimal. Thankfully, the guests were all good-natured and got friendly under the shade of the single umbrella without complaint. And aside from the frosting melting off the cupcakes, the party was just as I hoped it would be.

Milo had a trucks/construction theme, complete with orange traffic cones, a couple traffic signs, and a construction site cake. The tables were covered with brown paper; hand-drawn roads were dotted with toy cars. The kids played with bubbles and a couple of Milo's ride-on toys. Presents were abundant, and in the weeks since the party, Milo has really enjoyed playing with his new toys.

Perhaps the highlight of the party for me was the expression on Milo's face as everybody sang to him. We had tried to tell him about the singing/candle tradition so he wouldn't be startled by the attention. I don't know if the prep helped, but he seemed to love having everyone sing to him. He even tried to blow out his candles, with help from Daddy of course.

I imagine this is the last year that Milo won't know his birthday was coming up. The last year he wouldn't want a say in the theme or flavor of the dessert. The time really flies, doesn't it?

Milo's two-year stats

Because no blog is complete without pediatrician-approved measurements, here's how Milo stacked up at his recent two-year check-up (almost a month after his birthday):

Weight: 30 lbs, 10 oz., 80th percentile
Height: 35 inches, 70th percentile
Head circumference: 20 inches, 95th percentile.

Almost three feet tall! And apparently with a huge head! That's my boy.

Olive is two months (and a bonus week or so) old!

Olive is ten weeks old, if you can believe that. She's had her official two-month check-up, and she's measuring quite well.

Weight: 12 lbs., 75th percentile
Length: 23 inches, 80th percentile
Head circumference: 15 1/2 inches, 80th percentile

She's looking less like Milo and more like Olive. I had this moment of clarity awhile back when I looked at her and just thought, of course this is what she looks like. This is my daughter, it's so obvious. It's hard to explain, I think, but it was like I recognized her from way back or something, like I've always known her.

She is smiling a lot these days, especially if she is being smiled at. She responds to big goofy grins and silly, high-pitched voices. Her dimples are knocking 'em dead left and right. Man, those dimples are cute.

I adore Olive's hair. It seems to be getting even longer, and it completely sticks up on the top/back. It's very red in the sun, though not quite as strawberry-blonde as my natural color. A little browner-hued, I think. I'm curious to see how her hair color changes as she grows, or if it will change.

Her schedule is becoming more regular. Wakes for the day around 7:00, eats, hangs out for a bit, then back to sleep for a good long morning nap. Sleeps/eats/wakes during the afternoon, eating every three hours or so. Slightly fussy in the late afternoon/evening, but still pretty easy to placate. Down for the night by 8:30, usually closer to 7:30 (but I want to push it a little later). Wakes once at about 3:00 to eat and get a diaper change. It's not too bad. My main complaint is that she isn't great at napping in her crib during the day. She sleeps great there at night, but prefers to be snuggled for daytime naps. It's not super conducive to me doing much of anything.

Olive takes awhile to get good and worked up about something. If she is hungry/poopy/uncomfortable/sleepy/etc., she sort of quietly whines and whimpers. If not responded to, she builds up to a good steady cry. She rarely turns it up to 11, which is nice.

She's getting stronger all the time and now can hold her head for a minute or two at a time. She supports her upper body, too, briefly. Seems to prefer being more upright and looking out at the world than in a reclined position in someone's arms. Still rolling over tummy to back, but not back to tummy yet. She's gotten close, but hasn't managed to flip all the way.

Olive has, in her short life, been hit in the face with a toy, kicked in the face (albeit gently) by her brother, and been placed too close to the edge of Milo's bed (due to the face-kicking, I was trying to move her out of harm's way, forgetting how wiggly she has become)(and thankfully the bed is just a mattress on the floor) and rolled off (courtesy of yours truly)(I was tied up changing an unexpectedly poopy diaper of Milo's and feel terrible about the whole face-planting thing). Kids with older siblings have to be tough, don't they? Not sure how I ended up so wimpy. Clearly my sister was not tough enough on me.

Olive has definitely wiggled into this family. It's becoming more natural for me to say I have two kids and talk about being a family of four. And I think I like it.

Worth it

Guess where Olive and I are? What, you don't want to guess? Okay then, I will tell you. We're in Indiana, PA, visiting my sister and her family!

Courtney is 32 weeks pregnant with identical twins and has recently been put on bed rest. My mom had decided to drive out here to help out with household stuff and Courtney's two kids. And I thought, I wish I could go visit and introduce Olive to her Aunt Courtney. Then I thought... why can't I go?

So I started thinking it through. Olive would need to go with me since I am her only food source at the moment. I'd need to reschedule the kids' doctors appointments. How would I get back, since Mom would be staying six or seven weeks? I'd miss Easter. And would Andrew be okay to take care of Milo solo for a week? And could I stand being away from Milo and Andrew for that long?

So. Andrew was fine with the whole thing and encouraged me to go. I rescheduled the doctors appointments. The Easter Bunny came early to our house. My amazing in-laws gave me points to use for a flight home. And even though I knew I'd miss my boys like crazy, I decided to go.

It's a 900-mile trip, and Olive did really great. She slept a lot, and only fussed for short periods of time. Of course we had to stop frequently for feeding her and changing her diaper, but it wasn't too bad.

Did I mention that my visit was a total surprise to Courtney? She knew Mom was coming, but we kept my participation a secret. So when we got here, my mom walked in, then I followed behind. I got an amazing greeting. Big hugs and even a few tears. She was so glad to see me and to meet Olive. If I hadn't made this trip, she wouldn't have gotten to meet Olive until the end of June, and that is just too long.

I do miss Milo like crazy. The first night I was gone, Andrew told me he forgot I wasn't there and after bath, he went to the top of the stairs and called "Mommy!" like he always does so I'll come up and read stories to him. Broke my heart a little. We've been hanging out on Google+, so I've gotten to see him and give him virtual kisses and high fives, but it's sure not the same as hugging that little guy and tucking him into bed.

It's good to be here, though. I am having fun with my niece and nephew, and it's great to see my sister and brother-in-law. And while I can't wait to meet my future nephews, I sure hope they hold off until well after I go back home.