Go to Work Mommy

While I was trying to get Miles settled for a nap today, he said "Go to work mommy!" completely out of the blue. He went on to tell me that he would stay here with Hailey. I asked him who would change her diapers and he said he would. I asked him who would feed her and he said he would. I asked him what she would eat and he said "I don't know"! It was pretty funny. I went on to tell him that I would be going back to work in a few weeks and he asked who would stay with him then, daddy? I told him no, he'd be going back to school more and Hailey would also be going to school. He asked if she was getting bigger and I said yes. He accepted that. :)

Bar-Rettes

This last week was a busy week for us again! On Wednesday, Missy, Gavin and Emmett came in. They had driven to South Bend for Gavin's spring break and came down here for the day. Mom and Michael came up and we all spent a great day together! The kids played here at the house in the morning. For lunch, we were making individual pizzas. Miles loves to do this and I thought the other boys would as well. Emmett got into it and did top his pizza with sauce, cheese, and 1 pepperoni right in the middle! Gavin is on an eating strike and didn't want to top his pizza, so we baked it with nothing on it!

After lunch, we headed outside for an Easter Egg hunt. Miles decided he was scared of bugs in the backyard and refused to hunt for any eggs, tightly holding onto Uncle Michael. Then we just played outside for quite a while (he finally let go of Michael and did play). Soon enough, Missy left to meet up with some friends and we headed to the park for more fun then back home for spaghetti.
On Friday, Andre, Emily and Evelyn came up to visit and meet Hailey. Evelyn is getting so big and is so beautiful! We had a great visit and a great dinner that Ahmad fixed up for us.

Saturday we headed over to our old neighbor's new house for Robyn's 2nd birthday party. We had a nice visit and once Miles warmed up, he had a great time playing with all the girls.

Ahmad was trying to convince the girls to pull him. They did try, but didn't get too far!

Happy 2nd Birthday Robyn!

Mary and Hailey are a month apart in age.

Then on Sunday, Amber, Jeff and Lauren came for a visit and early dinner. It's been great spending so much time with our friends and family lately! When Ahmad came back from the store from getting things for dinner, he surprised me with a beautiful flower arrangement! He said it was for our very busy last 2 months. :) I love surprises!

Miles is up to so much these days! He's really asserting his independence (in both good and bad ways!) and just seems to be getting so much older these days. He came back from school last week and had learned the high five gig- "Up high, down low, you're too slow!". He thought that was hilarious and had learned it from a "big kid at school". He moved up to the 3 year old classroom and I told him that was for the big kids, so now he's very proud he's a big kid!

He talks all the time about being big or being little and comparing himself to us and to Hailey. It cracks me up that he can't wait to get bigger so he can sit in my seat in the car and drive! He then tells me that I'll be little and will sit in his seat. In the words of my dad "when you get big and I get little..."! While Andre and Emily were up visiting, Ahmad was grilling out back and had the door open a lot. Miles was helping him grill and then sort of just wandered into the yard. He began picking up sticks and putting them in the fire pit and then playing on the swing set. Ahmad had come inside, but Miles remained out there (despite the bugs he was afraid of during the Easter egg hunt!). I was glued to the window watching him and seeing him play all by himself really made him seem old! It's definitely not something I'd let him do on a regular basis, but he did play nicely!

He's into bugs lately and can't decide if he's scared of them or if he likes them. It depends on the day and the situation as to how he feels. He was telling me that bugs were going to come out of his eyes or that they would get his eyes and eat him. Then the next time we talk, he says bugs are nice. Go figure! He seems to be "scared" of a lot of things lately-bugs, lions, the dark (sometimes) or of situations-playing with new kids, going down a slide, etc.

Miles also discovered a few weeks ago that he can cross his eyes and that it drives me batty! I can't stand seeing him do this for some reason. He'll do this and tell me to look at him repeatedly. I cover his face and tell him not to do that, which of course drives him to do it more! I also introduced him to a knock-knock joke. I thought since he was into the high fives, he might like jokes. I only taught him one-"knock knock; who's there?; boo; boo who?; why are you crying?!" He thought this was great! However, he needs to work on his delivery!

He did have a bit accomplish over the weekend...he stood up and put his pants on! He was so very proud of himself for doing this and not having to sit down, put both legs in and then stand up to pull them up. After he was dressed, he even came out and took off his pants to show Daddy how he could put them on!
It was funny...the other day, I came out in the morning and was going to pump milk. Miles has seen me do this and sometimes shows great interest and sometimes pays no attention. That day, he was interested! He came over, took the part that goes on my breast, lifted his shirt and put it on his chest! He told me to turn it on and he'd give Hailey some milk too. It was too cute and if I didn't think a photo would have been damaging, I would have taken a picture! He got a bit upset that I wouldn't turn it on and kept saying it wasn't working and he didn't have any milk.

Miles seems to be on the verge of giving up his naps. Ug! I hate to see this happening! He still needs them because if he doesn't take one and sits still long enough (sometimes only 10-15 minutes!) he'll fall asleep in the evening about an hour or two before bedtime. If he keeps moving, he stays awake, but sometimes this turns into some bad behavior from being over tired. When he changed rooms last week at school, he stopped napping. I wondered if he'd nap in there because whenever he visited that room, he wouldn't nap. I asked the teacher about his napping and she said she thought he was just one of those kids that didn't nap because he never seemed tired. She also said there are other kids in the room that don't nap. If people are up having fun (not that they are, but they aren't sleeping), Miles will stay up too. I explained that he does nap and usually takes great naps and she agreed to try harder to get him down. Well, Saturday morning, Ahmad was at work and Miles just wouldn't go down. It was quite a battle and I think we were both in tears at one point. He finally went to sleep and got about an hour in before we had to leave for the birthday party. Sunday, he went down and then ended back up, never napping. Monday, another battle and no nap. Yesterday, no battle-he stayed in his room, but no nap. Hmmm. We'll see! It will be sad if he's done with naps!

Exhibit A: 5pm Sunday evening after no nap earlier in the day

I took him yesterday to the mall to play on the indoor play land and then have lunch. It took him 20 minutes to get off my lap and then another 15 to stop playing on the benches and actually play on the equipment. He's funny how it takes him a while to warm up to situations with other kids sometimes. It's like he needs time to observe, figure out what's going on, and then he'll join in. I can't blame him though-I was shy as a child too. He ended up having a great time and ate a bit before coming home. This all happened after a power struggle over taking a bath in the morning. Let's just say I ended up jumping in the tub with my pajamas on to get him washed and rinsed. It was not a great start to the day and I knew I didn't want to try to entertain him at home all day. That's how we ended up going to the mall. Then after he didn't nap, I needed another plan. It was fairly warm and very sunny, so we headed out for a walk. I put Hailey in the wrap on my tummy and pushed Miles in his stroller. Wow, that was a lot harder than I thought it would be! I was tired half way through, so when Miles wanted to stop and look at the pool and than play on the little playground next to it, I agreed! It had rained the night before and it was a bit muddy and wet still. He ran around for a bit and then was trying to get up the courage to go down the tunnel slide. There was a puddle at the bottom of it. I told Miles it was there and he could go down if he wanted, but he'd land in the puddle. He finally decided to do it and got a wet butt. After a few more runs, he wandered over to the sand volleyball court, which was all wet and full of puddles. He stood next to a puddle and looked at me. I figured, he's already wet and it's fun to play in puddles, so I gave him the ok to play in it (I was impressed he restrained himself to even asked first!). He had a blast! He played in the sand and puddle, used a stick, damned it up, connected it to another puddle, so much fun! He was a mess! I wish I'd had my camera, which I had almost brought, but did capture a few shots on my phone. Finally, we were ready to head back home and into the bath. We had ended up being gone for about 2 hours!

Hailey wearing her barrette- I think she liked it!

I haven't forgotten to talk about Hailey! She's doing awesome and is really developing rapidly. She's able to turn around when she's on her belly (scooting in a circle), is opening her hands more, talks and smiles so much! She loves having her diaper changed and just talks away and smiles at me the whole time. I swear when I say "Hi!" she says it back! She had 2 almost giggles yesterday too. I can't wait to hear them again! She was all dressed in purple the other day and Ahmad decided she needed to wear a matching barrette, so he got one out and put it in her hair. It lasted just long enough to get a few pictures, but not much longer. She also loves "standing" on your lap and looking around. It's too adorable when Miles plays with her too-she looks at him and just smiles so big! They are a great pair. I hope they continue to get along as they grow up!

Playing cups with Hailey

Well, I think I've rambled enough for this week. There's always something going on here! Can't wait to see what happens next!

In the Bend

Another busy good week at the Keyes' house! Last week, Miles went to school on Monday and Tuesday and we headed out to South Bend Wednesday evening. Ahmad was able to book some appointments up there on Thursday and Friday, so we had a nice long visit with the family. About 20 minutes into the car ride up, Miles stated he wanted out. Ug! We were afraid it was going to be a really long trip. However, he did really well and only stated he wanted out a few more times. Hailey also fussed some and we had to stop once so I could nurse her. Then she was ok the rest of the trip. We got in late and enjoyed some Frankie's for a snack (yum yum yum!). Thursday, everyone was working except me and the kids so Ahmad dropped us off at George and Joanna's house so we could play with Joanna and the kids all day. Miles was playing shy boy and really didn't play with Tofiq until about 4pm or so. He clung to me all day and continued to wrap my arm around him, telling me to keep him safe. He did nap well though, much to my surprise, in the basement in a sleeping bag. He actually slept for about 3 hours! Hailey slept most of the day and was good, of course! Joanna and I enjoyed girl/mommy/wife talk while we visited and soon after naps, the husbands got in. We stayed for dinner and enjoyed a very yummy chicken dish and beer bread. I have to remember to make that recipe!


Friday, we stayed at the house and just hung out. Tiphanny and Mckenzy came over for a bit in the morning to hang out. Miles again napped well and I woke him up after 3 1/2 hours! Everyone came over for pizza that evening and we really enjoyed spending time with the family. It was funny to watch the other kids with Hailey-they all love her! Actually, Tofiq and Ramzi did as well-kids love babies!

Saturday, we went to visit Jamal and Tiphanny's new house and enjoyed having the kids play together again. Miles and Mckenzy have really hit it off and play together well. When we got back and Miles got up from his nap, Ahmad broke out the trombone that was in the basement. Miles had a blast and was so excited to play with it! He watches a lot of shows that involve a trombone, so he couldn't wait to get his hands on it. Plus, the little drum set that is usually set up at their house needed a bit of work, so it wasn't set up and Miles was so disappointed. Anyway, it didn't take long for Miles to learn how to make music with the trombone and he played and played and played.




Sunday morning we headed out to Trios for brunch with everyone before heading out of town again. It was so nice to spend time with everyone and I think they all enjoyed having Miles and Hailey around. It was funny, before we were leaving, Mama Keyes was changing Hailey's diaper while we packed the car. She was very proud of herself and announced when she was done that 'there, I can still do it!'. I sat there debating what to say...finally, I told her that she did do it, but she put it on backwards! lol! Too funny. And can you believe Hailey is 6 weeks old today?

The drive back home went well, but Miles didn't nap like we hoped. He watched some movies and tried hard to stay awake. Hailey slept the majority of the time, but she did fuss for a bit. Miles was so cute-he made up a song to sing to her when she was fussing. It consisted of "Baby Hailey Baby Hailey Baby Hailey" over and over again. It was a great attempt at soothing his sister! He played for a bit when we got home and then I took him to go pick up some dinner. He was asleep halfway there. When I brought him in to the house, I put him in the chair and asked him if he wanted to go lay down. He replied no and promptly laid down and went to sleep! We woke him about 7:30 and got him into the tub and jammies. Everyone slept great and we didn't wake up until about 8am this morning! Hailey finally went down about 1am for the night and only woke at 6am for a feeding. Then she was back down until a little after 9am! What a good night!

Miles seemed itching to go do something this morning, so we went to the bank and then to what I thought was Hobby Lobby in Castleton. I'm looking for a pink frame for a photo of Hailey in her room and having a hard time finding it. When we got there, I realized it wasn't Hobby Lobby, it was Hobby Town. We went in anyway since we were there and picked up one of those really thin wooded planes that fit together and some Sprees after watching the toy train run it's course a few times. We got home, had some lunch and now everyone is napping again.

Ahmad's new job has been going really well and we're so blessed right now. I hope that it continues on the course it's going and that Ahmad continues to be happy with it. That would be so wonderful. Hailey continues to grow and explore. She started turning in her bed while we were out of town. She started at a 12 o'clock position and ended up at a 3 or 4 o'clock position. So, I took out the bumpers in her bed today and put the railing all the way up. I know she has a while before she's up and about, but it makes me feel better since she's on her way. She's also smiling and cooing so much these days! Miles continues to assert his independence when he feels like it. This morning, he wanted to get dressed by himself, without me in the room. So I got out everything he would need and left the room. He came out about 10 minutes later fully dressed! He did great! I later discovered that his underwear was on backwards, but that's ok.

I started pumping last night as well and Hailey will have her first bottle tonight. Hopefully she'll take it ok. I'm going to try pumping twice a day for now-once for a daily bottle and once to freeze. I hope to have a good supply built up before I go back to work. Ok, well, now I'm getting back to my post before publishing it and we tried the bottle. It didn't go well! She wouldn't take it, so we're going to try again tomorrow. If she doesn't take it tomorrow, we'll get a different bottle and try that. I hope she takes it soon!

The Smells of Motherhood

I never thought I'd love the smell of a freshly opened pack of diapers and I'm wondering if I'm a little bit crazy because I don't mind the smell of spit up on my shirt. I love apple juice kisses and have discovered that Gushers' breath reminds me of yucky medicine. I never thought I'd sit in a bathroom while someone went #2 just to keep them company. A bath renews a child's innocent scent. Rubber boots and no socks don't mix well. Thrown-up cheese is disgusting. I can actually smell unclean hands and when we've gone one too many days without a bath. Baby's breath smells sweet and a sweaty child reminds me of hot summer days on the playground. I can actually smell a snotty nose and a cold coming on. Chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven represent more than a yummy treat; they represent quality time spent making them with my son. I never knew that smells could be so defining of who I am right now....

Keep Me Safe

We've had a good, fairly calm week. I had Miles home with me part time this week and really enjoyed the extra time with him. He's so cute with Hailey for the most part. He loves tickling her cheeks and always says something like "you are so little", "Baby Hailey is so nice", "Hello little girl" and "you are so silly, you are so silly!" He talks about doing things because he is big and then tells her she has to wait until she is bigger to do them too because she is so little. He also tells her that he loves her and that he missed her. When he gets home from school, he can't wait to see her, give her hugs and kisses, and hold her. It's really cute!

We went to church, Hailey's first time, on Sunday and actually had to leave early because the kids behind us wouldn't leave her alone. The church was packed and I had no where to move to. They kept touching and her or her carrier and it was really bothering me. She even ended up with a shoe landing on her face! From now on, I'll remember to look who we are sitting by!

We're loving Ahmad's new job and his nice new schedule. He sets his own schedule and has been able to spend a lot of extra time at home, but still is getting his work done. That's awesome! Friday he was home in the morning before his appointment, so I left Hailey home with him and took Miles to run a few errands. It was nice to just have time alone with him. However, Ahmad then had to work in the morning on Saturday. Miles had said he wanted to go to the library again and get new books, but when it came time to go, he decided he wanted to stay home and play instead. It was a very pleasant morning and we played several different things. He got out his blocks that can make bugs and we made a few bugs and then played pretend with them for some time. It was very interesting to see Miles learn to play pretend and see his ideas develop. I tried a few new games with him, but they didn't exactly play out. We tried hide and seek and he got it, kind of. He didn't hide well, which I knew to expect, but then he was telling me where to hide. It was a good try at the game, but he wasn't interested in it for too long. I also tried to do a scavenger hunt with him, telling him different things in the house to go and find. Well, he would tell me where the things were, but he didn't want to go get them. That didn't last too long either. Then I got out his glue stick and scissors, which is always a big hit. I wanted to try to do a collage with him, but he was really more interested in just cutting paper. I cut out some things for him to glue down, which he did, but overall, I would say he's not quite ready for collages!

Saturday was beautiful and when Ahmad got home from work, he took Miles outside for a bit. I was getting a little cabin fever and we decided to go out to dinner. It was Hailey's first dinner out and she slept right through it! Miles did fairly well, but didn't really nap earlier in the day, so he was getting to the end of his rope by the end of the meal. Sunday morning, we had a nice visit from the Azar family, who was in town visiting friends. It was nice to see them and introduce them to Hailey. They brought down the Bumbo seat that we had lent them and I tried it out on Hailey yesterday. She was actually able to sit in it! She sat for about 5 minutes before getting fussy, which I thought was pretty good. I'm surprised she's able to do it already!

Miles has been acting out a bit now towards Hailey. He walked by her while she was in her swing the other day and bopped her with a toy bowling pin. It didn't hurt her, but that was the first time I'd seen him do anything other than love on her. Of course he got a time out for that! Then he also reached out too aggressively towards her the following day. Again, another time out and a stern talking too. Nothing but niceness since then, but I've got my eye on him!

Hailey has been doing well. She's smiling more and seems to be cracking herself up at various things. She's not laughing out loud yet, but you can tell her little head is filled with giggles! She's awake more and more, but it seems that if she's up a lot one day, she sleeps the next! She's also been spitting up a lot here and there and having some gas issues. She also seems to be choking sometimes. She did that several times in the hospital and in the first few days at home, but hasn't really since then. We'll have to keep an eye on that and see how it goes. I picked up some gas drops today to see if that helps at all. Hopefully it will and it won't be a huge issue.

The other night, after our nightly rituals, Miles called out for us again. Ahmad went back to see what he needed and came out to get me, saying Miles was asking for me. I went in and he wanted to bug bug with me again. I agreed to one more moon and then it was time to sleep. We were laying there snuggling when all the sudden, Miles wrapped his arms around me and said "keep me safe". I wasn't sure at all where that came from or that he would really even know that concept and my heart skipped a beat. I held him back and replied that of course I would keep him safe. We held onto each other for a minute before he told me he heard a noise and asked what it was. I hadn't heard it and he moved on to a new topic of conversation. That moment keeps tugging at my heart....of course I always want to keep my children safe. I only hope that I can.

Before I Was a Mom

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom ,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put them down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom ...
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.

-Taken from an Email Forward

Amazing Mazes

I am so impressed with Miles right now that I just had to write a short entry. We pulled out his little learning computer and I asked him to show me how to use it. He hasn't used it too much or really done too many of the activities on it since he got it for Christmas. He pulled up some games and found a maze activity to do. It's a set of 3 mazes, each one getting harder than the previous one. Miles had trouble navigating the mouse to work through the maze, but his instructions to me on where to go were impeccable. Every maze was different and out of about 15 mazes that he completed, he only messed up twice and even then he back tracked and found the right path. After watching me to do them, he did take the mouse and was able to work it much better. He would check out the new maze for a minute and then proceed to the end. There were even multiple ways to get to the end on some of them and he often found ways that I didn't even see at first or that were the harder of the options available. I am so impressed! I have no idea how he knew how to do these and never would have thought he could do them! Yea Miles!

I also took Hailey to the doctor today for her 1 month check up. She's doing fabulous! She's gained almost another pound-up to 10 pounds and 10 ounces now, falling into the 90th percentile for weight again. She grew 1/4 inch, falling into the 50th percentile this time. Her head also grew about a cm, measuring 38 cm. She also got a shot. No concerns at all on the doctor's part!

Two amazing kids whom I love very much!!! :)

Sharing Bubba

Hailey at 3 weeks old

We are really settling in with Hailey now. I can't believe she's already a month old! On one hand, it feels like she's been a part of our family forever, but on the other hand, time is flying by so fast! She's really growing a lot and starting to fill out now. She's smiling more and more and coo-ing and ahh-ing. It's so much fun to see her grow. She outgrew her first outfit this week and I think a drawful of onesies are next! When I was pregnant, I wondered how it would feel to see a second child meet their milestones and grow, change and develop. I wondered if it would have any lost appeal or excitement because we had already been through it all with Miles. It hasn't! It's just as special and exciting to see Hailey do new things as it was to see Miles do them. And it's so wonderful to Miles grow and change and be a big brother. He has a whole new role in the family now and he's doing a wonderful job at it. He truly loves Hailey and spending time with her.

Hailey's 1 month photo

Miles couldn't resist a photo opt with Hailey

Last week, dad was finally strong and well enough to leave the hospital, so we decided to make a trip to New Albany so he could meet Hailey for the first time. It was a great visit and we really enjoyed spending time with Grampie, Nana, and Uncle Michael. Ahmad stayed behind to work since he just started a new job and had lots of learning to do. We also managed to see Nikki and the Keltner family while we were there. It was a good visit, but we were happy to get home to daddy too!

Last week was our first full week of Miles going to daycare part time, but since we were in New Albany for part of the week, it really went fast. He's at daycare today and tomorrow, but this week has gone really well with him home more. I love being a "stay at home mom"! It does present it's own challenges and I do wish I had so much to spend with both of the kids individually, but all in all, it's going well. Monday we went to the library, a place we've only taken Miles to like twice. He loved it! There was a child friendly computer that he enjoyed playing on while I picked out some books for him. He even got his own library card! I remember (with the help of my mom's memory) getting my first library card. I was pretty young as well and absolutely loved the librarian. I wanted so badly to get my own library card, but you had to be able to print your name to get a card. I worked so hard to learn to do this! Miles is already talking about going back and getting new books. I'm not sure why we never did this before! I'd often thought about it, but never really got around to it. One of the perks of being home more I guess.

We also had a wonderful visit from our old neighbors. They brought us Chinese and gifts for Hailey and Miles and we had a nice play date night!

Miles continues to process our new family. The other day, he started talking about how he and Hailey share a mommy. Then he said that they also share a daddy. Then he said that they could share Bubba too! Bubba is my wonderful friend out in Iowa whom he's met on several occasions. It's so funny to me that he talks about her. She's made quite an impression on him because he talks about her randomly fairly often.

I couldn't resist some photo opts of the two!

Another funny thing that Miles does now is whenever Hailey spits up or I say she's going to spit up, he takes off! If you've read my previous post about her spitting up on him, you understand what I mean. He remembers that and makes sure it doesn't happen again! It's pretty funny to see him just jet at the first sign!

We had a great weekend and spent most of the day Saturday with our good friends the Kleins. It was their daughter Lauren's first birthday party and we really enjoyed their party! Miles loves playing with Jeff, Lauren's dad. He always rough houses with him and loves to tackle him. He got going during the party and Lauren was absolutely cracking up at him! It was too funny to hear her laughs at Miles. Happy Birthday Lauren!




Yesterday, I could tell Miles was getting a bit stir crazy and needed to work off some energy. It was a nicer day than we'd been having, but still too cold to have Hailey out playing. So, we went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch and play time on their slide and play equipment. Miles was pretty shy at first and didn't want to go on it, although that's all he talked about during lunch and couldn't get done eating fast enough to go play. Eventually, he warmed up and had fun playing with the other kids. While he was playing, I was chatting with another mom watching her kids. It was funny...I felt like such a mom! We chatted about the kids, work, daycare, potty training. It was interesting that it just struck me that I was a mom and could carry on those conversations with complete strangers. Very fun.

Now Miles is at school today and Hailey is enjoying some peace and quiet and taking a nap in her swing. We are heading out in a bit to pick up our photos from JC Penny's and then to Hailey's 1 month check up. Should be another great day!