Happy 'ween!

It's hard to believe it's almost Thanksgiving ... and I haven't even written about Halloween yet! It was the first year that Nate could actually understand what Halloween was. For weeks, we trained him to say, "trick or treat" to get candy. "What do you say, Nate?" "Happy 'ween!" Good enough.

 A very scary dinosaur!

 Our crawling baby lobster.

We loaded our T-Rex and baby lobster into the double stroller and found a well-lit street in our neighborhood where the houses are all decked out for Halloween. Within five minutes, our baby lobster was asleep. At the very first house we went to, we said, "trick or treat!" (And by "we," I mean me and Chuck. Nate stood silent.) Behind the door, we heard some scary breathing, then the door opened up with a lady in a mask that even scared me, let alone a 2-year-old. Already a little apprehensive about the dark and his scary costume, Nate looked like he was about to cry. When she realized how little he was, she took the mask right off and offered him some candy. We went to about 10 houses, then headed back home. Baby lobster slept through it all, but looked adorable nonetheless!

Earlier in October, we went to Hodges Farm to pick pumpkins and see all the animals. We went last year when Nate was 1 1/2 and I was prego with Theo. You can read about it here: Pumpkin' pickin' and Halloween. It's crazy how much Nate has changed. This farm has about a million pumpkins in at least 10 different fields. And Nate would walk from pumpkin to pumpkin, exclaiming, "Punkin!" "Another punkin!" as though it was the most exciting thing ever. He picked out a few to bring home, but he wanted nothing to do with the carving process or pulling out its guts. (Surprising, for a child who loves to play in the dirt.) Nate also got to meet a few goats, horses, cows, chickens, and he still tells me all about them and the different noises they make.

 A punkin, Mommy! A PUNKIN!!!!!

 Theo just wanted to cruise.

Theo is almost 9 months old already. With two bottom teeth, he is just starting to eat Cheerios and mashed up apples and bananas. He started crawling about a month ago and is an expert cruiser. He can even stand on his own for about 15 seconds, and he can balance really well while he's kneeling. He especially likes to crawl to the glass door, get on his knees and pound on the door at the cats. He is fascinated with Wylie and Yeats -- Truman steers clear of babies these days -- and tends to abuse them if he can get his hands (and teeth) on them.

Theo loves swinging in the backyard!

The boys snuggling in bed with Dada. 

Watching their favorite show together -- "Super Why." Can you tell they're brothers?

Cruisin' for trouble

Overnight, my innocent 8-month-old has turned into a troublemaker. For the past few months, he was content to sit and quietly play with his toys for long periods of time. It's been a while since we really had to worry about him toppling over. Now, he's no longer content sitting and is constantly cruising along the coffee table, his crib, even the bathtub. He started crawling last weekend, but it seems like he only wants to crawl to a place where he can cruise and get into mischief. Nate was the same way.

Theo's newest fascination is with paper products: napkins, magazines, books, etc. He tears them to shreds and will stuff them in his mouth if you're not watching. It's even harder with a second kid because not only do we have to watch out for dangerous items we might leave lying around, we also have to make sure Nate doesn't give him anything he could choke on. He gave Theo a nickel the other day -- very generous, I know. It's hard to explain to a 2-year-old what he can't give his brother.

As you saw in the previous post, Nate's awesome sleeping habits are over. For a good year, he slept soundly from 7pm to 6am. It was early, but it also gave me a few hours to myself every night. Now, if he takes a nap during the day, he's up until 11pm. He usually sleeps in until 8 or 9, but still. If he doesn't take a nap, he gets SUPER CRANKY around 6-7pm and cries a lot.  

Remember when Nate barely talked? Those days are over. He seriously never shuts up. Here's a conversation from this morning:

"Mama. Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Cinnamon Toast Crunch"
"Nate, we don't have Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Do you want Life?"
"Mama. Life. Life. Life. Life. Life. Life. Life. Life."
I put some dry Life Cereal on the table for him.
He grabs my leg. "Mama. I wanna bowl. I wanna bowl. I wanna bowl. I wanna bowl. I wanna bowl."

You get the picture. By being really annoying, he gets what he wants much faster.

Serious nap resistance

About every other day, Nate will avoid taking his nap. This is how it's going:

Another rockin' road trip

The Daley Family

This post is coming about two weeks too late, but we have to mention our trip to lovely Cumberland, Maryland, over Labor Day weekend to visit the Daley family. After our 20-hour trips to Minnesota, the 7-hour drive to Cumberland was a breeze. Well, it would have been if we hadn't left at 3pm on the Friday before Labor Day. But that's OK -- we took an "alternate route" through some of Charlotte's suburbs' historic downtowns. It didn't seem to save us any time, but at least it was pretty!

The whole way up, we kept telling Nate that he would see Mary and "A'um," Mamma and "Beepsby," and Pete and "Nanoo" (that's what he calls Jess. Not sure why.) He was a little shy at first, but all a strange relative needs to do is to take him outside and you've instantly become his favorite. Peter and Jess got to meet Theo for the first time -- and Mamma and Grampy hadn't seen him since he was just 6 weeks old. He showed them his amazing acrobatic skills, his superb sitting capabilities, his penchant for smiling, and his out-of-this-world hair volume.

Speaking of hair volume, Theo got his fifth haircut last week after he was mistaken for a girl three times in as many days. I'm not going to say who accidentally said, "How old is she?" but he is the author of "Banktown: The Rise and Struggles of Charlotte's Big Banks." And it may not just be Theo's hair; I suspect his rosy cheeks and pouty lips may add to his feminine mystique. But that's OK because like his brother, the kid is all boy. He likes roughhousing, jumping in his exersaucer like a maniac, slamming objects together, being really noisy and making lots of messes.

Nate is LOVING preschool. There is only one other boy in his class and five girls, so he has his choice of the ladies. He's currently looking for one who shares his passion for the alphabet. He likes to do art projects and sing in music class, and of course he also loves the park there. Chuck got Nate some Hot Wheels and a car ramp a few weeks ago, and it is his new favorite thing to do. He's also been bringing his comforter out into the living room and lying on the couch with a pillow -- or, better yet, covering up his Elmos (he has three) or Theo (who doesn't really dig it). He knows how to relax!

The end of summer

It's been a while since we've updated the blog. We've spent a good chunk of the summer in Minnesota to spend time with Joe and the rest of the family. The past few months have been really, really tough, but the blessing is that we were able to spend so much time together. The Vogels have seen Theo pretty much every month since he was born, and Nate is no longer shy around his relatives. In fact, we've heard "Grrrama and Bumpa!" constantly since we came back to Charlotte. He's eager to have them visit soon!

Theo with Grandma and Grandpa at the Loggers game.

Nate and his Grandpa. Still a little shy. :)

Nate and Grandma enjoy a dip in the pool, his new favorite activity!

 Theo is enamored with big cousin Brody.

Grandpa and Theo.

Theo is already 6 months old and has quickly become the Rolling-Over Champion of the World. Seriously, you can't put the kid down for five seconds before he flips -- and then flips again. He's also beginning to master squirming around on his belly. It's not quite a crawl, but he can make some serious traction in no time at all. We started him on solids a little bit after he turned 5 months, and it took a while before he got the hang of it, or even seemed to like it. That was strange after our experience with Nate, who was an eating champ the second we started him on cereal at 4 months. But now Theo is doing really well. He's had rice cereal, oatmeal, barley, peas, green beans, sweet potatoes, carrots, bananas, apples, peaches, pears, and prunes. He had his 6-month appointment last week and weighed 18 lb., 8 oz. and measured 27.5 inches long. That's 75th percentile for weight and 85th percentile for height.

 Who could resist that sweet face?

Drool from teething ... and yet no teeth. :(

Getting ready to crawl!

Nate has become obsessed with letters and numbers. He mumbles the alphabet or counts to 20 as he's playing, and he sometimes says the entire alphabet backwards -- just as fast as I could. He recognizes letters and numbers in random, everyday things, like a bitten-off pretzel ("9!"), a mark on the wall ("L!"), or his ketchup after he swipes into it ("C!"). I guess the child of two English majors is bound to have a love of letters.

The obsession.

 Two nerds working hard.

After a long day of work and play, the kid knows how to relax.

Theo's Four-Month Photos

These were taken last month -- Theo actually turns 5 months today! He is rolling over, sitting up pretty well, and passing his toys back and forth between his hands. We're thinking about starting him on solids sometime before he turns 6 months (Nate started at 4 months, but that's because he was always ravenous). Until then, we'll enjoy his relatively sweet-smelling diapers. :)

Mommy or Daddy?

Before I had Nate, I wondered if he would prefer Chuck because he stays home. Would he resent me for leaving him every day to go to work? Would Chuck be the one he would run to when he skinned his knee or needed to snuggle before bed? Well, no. Nate knows very well the difference between Mommy and Daddy. And now that he can talk so much, he likes to express his preference.

When we take Nate outside, he almost always runs straight to his swing and says, "Swing! Swing! Swing!" But when Mommy tries to put him in his swing, he says, "Dada!" If Mommy continues to act like she's going to swing him, he starts whining, "Dada! Dada! Dada!" Why? Because when Daddy pushes him, he goes so high that he catches some air and is within inches of wrapping himself around the tree branch. Even when Mommy pushes her hardest, she physically can't make the swing into a dangerous carnival ride. So Daddy wins.

But in the evenings when he's winding down for bed, Nate will bring his books into the living room and bring them directly to me. Sometimes I'm nursing or otherwise occupied. I'll say, "Daddy can read you that book." Daddy tries, but he just doesn't have Mommy's talent for vocal inflection or animated storytelling. So Nate always insists on having Mommy read him his bedtime stories. Mommy wins.

Flying solo with a 4-month-old

Last weekend, Theo and I flew together without Chuck and Nate. I knew it would be tough hauling our gear through the airport and having no other set of hands to take the baby when a). I go through security or b). I have to go to the bathroom. But we managed the parking, the shuttle, the security, the boarding, and the nearly 3-hour flight just fine. The hardest part was the pure boredom -- for both of us. There is only so much you can do to entertain a 4-month-old and I had to squint my eyes to read a fellow passenger's Wall Street Journal as a way to pass the time.

We had a great time at the Team Vogel vs. Cancer Benefit and Theo was a trooper, staying there from 7am-6pm, enduring a 1-mile walk in the Baby Bjorn (thanks, Goldbergs), being passed around among many relatives, and napping in his car seat.

Aunt Sue, Angie, Theo and Nisa just before the race.

The ladies (and gentleman) of the bake sale.

Theo's godfather, Joe, loves to make babies laugh!

I forgot how delightful 4-month-old babies can be. Theo is so happy all the time (when he isn't super hungry or tired, of course) and is so easy to entertain. We started putting him in his exersaucer a few weeks ago and he loves to jump and play with all the toys. He also rolled over from back to front, can sit up by himself for almost a minute, and is bearing weight on his legs (standing up when we hold his hands). He giggles too! It's the cutest sound, usually really low and breath-y and when he really gets going, he'll even squeal. And he ADORES his big brother Nate. He'll watch Nate and smile with his mouth wide open and giggle at him -- especially when Nate jumps on the bed (his favorite new activity). Nate really loves Theo too, giving him kisses, hugging him, and trying to carry him. He never seems to be jealous of him either. Maybe they're all this way when they're babies, but I really think that Nate and Theo are going to be the best of friends. :)

Another big boy

Theo had his 4-month appointment today. Of course, the doctor raved about how adorable he was with "all that hair." He weighed in at 16 lb. 10 oz. and measured 26 inches long -- the 90th percentile for both! Nate was a little over 17 lb and 26.5 inches at 4 months, so Theo is still a little smaller than Nate was. Still, it looks like we're raising a couple of bruisers! The Vogel/Daley football team is coming along quite well ...

EXTREME Road Trip!

Forgive us for not updating the site in many weeks -- we've been resting after a very long drive to Minnesota. 18+ hours in a car with a 2-year-old, a 3-month-old and a dog? Are we crazy? Yes, yes we are. But it would be nearly as insane to try to take them on an airplane. At least in a car, when there's screaming, we're the only ones bothered by it. And actually, it wasn't so bad! I had extremely low expectations, assuming that it would be one of the most tortuous days of my life, so when there was just a little bit of crying, some toll booth issues (no cash), and a massive case of sleep deprivation, I was pleasantly surprised. We will definitely do it again.

We left on a Saturday afternoon at 3pm and the kids slept for nearly three hours before we stopped to eat and walk around somewhere in West Virginia. Then, we drove through the night, reaching Chicago around sunrise. I'm pretty sure that when we put Nate in the car and told him we were driving to Grandma and Grandpa's, he assumed that it would be about 20 minutes. But he was so excited -- every time we stopped and he woke up and started crying, I'd say, "Nate, we're almost there!" and he would say, "Grrrrma and Bampa" and smile and go right back to sleep. The last five hours were a little rough -- Chuck couldn't stay awake, the kids were cranky, and I had to drive through the beautiful-but-boring farmland of Wisconsin. When we arrived at my parents' house, we handed off the kids and took a little nap. Nate and Theo slept like champs the whole trip, so they were plenty rested to play with Grandma and Grandpa. Cousin Brody came over to play too, which Nate loved. And Wylie enjoyed her first vacation in Minnesota!

Best buds.

Hot and sweaty after a long day at the park.

We also were able to baptize Theo while we were in Minnesota, with Joe and Rachel as his godparents!

Vogel family picture.

The Vogel grandsons.

The monkeys

As the days are getting warmer, the boys are spending lots of time in the backyard. Chuck will try to get some work done, Theo snoozes in his bouncy seat or just looks around at the trees and birds, and Nate chases Wylie or soaks himself with the hose. The kid goes through at least three outfits a day, and inevitably is covered in mud and grass. It amazes me how he can be completely covered in dirt and be totally fine with it, but if he accidentally spills one drop of milk, he points at it and says, "Uh oh" over and over again.

Theo is holding his head up really well now. We've put him in Nate's old Bebe Pod (a baby seat with a tray) and he loves it! He's also starting to study his hands and grasp at things, so we can put a rattle and other baby toys on the tray for him to play with. His coordination still needs some work -- I think he's only accidentally picking things up or moving them around -- but he gets better every day. Last night when I put him to bed, he kept pulling his pacifier out of his mouth and would start crying. I suppose it'll be a while before he can start putting it back in.

Now that Nate's 2 and has adjusted to having a new little brother, we realize it's time to start potty training. I feel like every transition that we've had with Nate -- crying it out, going from bottle to sippy cup, moving to a toddler bed -- has been really easy. But potty training is a whole different ball game. They say we're supposed to start when he can pull his pants up and down, when he has the language to talk about it, and when he feels uncomfortable with a dirty diaper. Just in the past couple weeks, Nate has started talking about "goap" (poop). Sometimes it's to tell us that he just pooped; other times it's to tell us that he's about to poop. And you can tell that he's getting very uncomfortable with a poopy or just pee-soaked diaper: yesterday morning, he walked into our bedroom with his legs spread wide announcing "goap, goap, goap!" It's a start.

I think I put in the last post that Nate hasn't put two words together yet. Just in the past week, that's changed. But of course, the words that he's putting together involve "more" and "gimme," as in "More. Cereal." "Gimme. Milk." He says them like two separate words. Another phrase I heard at least 50 times this morning was "Dada. Y." (wants dad to take him to the YMCA).

We're gearing up for our LOOOOOOOOOONG road trip to Minnesota -- just over a week away!

Road trip

The Daleys were ambitious last weekend and took our first road trip as a foursome to a wedding in Charlottesville, Virginia, nearly five hours away. We've taken Nate to Charleston before, but that's only a three-hour drive. Mommy and Daddy were a little concerned that there would be a lot of screaming, but we coordinated both drives with their afternoon naps and it worked out perfectly! Of course, there were a couple meltdowns when Theo wanted to look at someone rather than the car seat and when Nate declared that he was "DONE! DONE! DONE!" with the road trip, but then Mommy would climb in between their car seats and entertain them with gooing, singing, counting, and kisses. Nate had lots of fun at the wedding chasing other kids around and even discovered a kids room that had crayons and Play-doh! And at night, he got to sleep with his daddy, who said he didn't sleep as well because of Nate's "razor toes."

Sleeping peacefully on the hotel bed.

Still sleepy (and a little grumpy) after his nap.

Chuck uses his adorable baby to promote his newest release. 

"Nose. Nose. Nose. Nose."

So happy!

No, we don't put product in his hair. He was born with incredible volume.

Do you see modeling in Theo's future?

My baby can read!

Not really, but he acts like he can. And the only word he seems to be able to read -- in everything -- is "Nate." For instance, I took his sidewalk chalk and wrote "Wylie." So Nate points at each letter and says, "W-Y-L-I-E: Nate!" And he found one of Chuck's boxes from the post office and spelled out "P-O-S-T-A-L-S-E-R-V-I-C-E: Nate!" And when I wrote out the names from our family, he spelled out "D-A-D-A-M-A-M-A-T-H-E-O-N-A-T-E: Nate! Nate! Nate! Nate!" Between this and him telling us that everything is "mine," I'm wondering if we have an egomaniac on our hands. That, or just a perfectly normal 2-year-old.

Tomorrow, Theo turns 12 weeks old, which means he's no longer a newborn. Now, he's officially an "infant." He's been such a good baby for so long that I feel like the newborn phase has been over for a long time -- he only cries when he's hungry/tired/gassy and he sleeps like a champ. All I have to do is put him down in the crib between 8 and 8:30 with a pacifier and he goes right to sleep. Nate was pretty good at this too; he just woke up a lot more during the night because he was perpetually hungry. Theo is still getting up around 4am for a feeding, but goes right back to sleep until 7:30 or so. Of course, this does me no good because Nate is still waking up at 6am. But then Nate and I get our special time with just us two, when he helps me unload the dishwasher and we eat "ceeweeal" together.

Easter and birthdays

I know it's been a while since we've updated the site, but we've been very BUSY! April was an exciting month. Mamma and Grampy Daley came to visit for Easter along with Great-Mamma Haltermann. Nate was a little shy in the beginning, but as soon as they took him outside to push him in his swing, he was smitten. Since then, he can't stop saying "Mamma" and "Beepsby" (Grampy). He also loves to say "Marmie" (Mary) and his favorite, "A-um!" (Adam)

Even though it was a week early, we celebrated Nate's 2nd birthday on Easter with the whole family. He loved his Elmo cake, his new remote control car, and his very own baseball chair, where he can put his feet up and relax. Now, when we ask Nate how old he is, instead of "a-one!" he says, "goo."

Nate can't wait to take a giant bite of Elmo's face.

Speaking of "goo," Nate likes to count to ten all the time now. It goes something like this: a-one, goo, bee, boar, bive, si, sebin, eee, nigh, ten, YAY! And then he claps for himself.

Nate had his 2-year pediatrician appointment this week and measured 35 3/4 inches tall and weighs 32 lbs., putting him in the 80th percentile for both. The doctor says his brain is measuring in the >97th percentile, but we already knew that.

And Theo celebrated a big birthday too -- 2 months! He has grown up so much since I posted last. He smiles all the time now, especially at his daddy, who loves to make funny sounds. He is an amazing sleeper too -- he sleeps from 8pm until 3 or 4am, nurses, and goes back down right away until 6 or 7. I don't think Nate did that until he was closer to 5 months. Theo had his 2-month pediatrician appointment last week and weighed in a 12lb., 12oz and measured 22 inches long. He's in the 25th percentile for height and the 75th percentile for weight (Nate was in the 90th percentile for both at the same age). It's amazing that he's so big already because it seems like just yesterday I was taking him in to the doctor to make sure that he was gaining weight. It doesn't seem to be a problem anymore!

 

 What a happy baby!

April was also a big month because Mommy had to go back to work. As the big day approached, I was a little anxious, trying to figure out how I could fit any more activities into my day. Even more nerve-wracking was imagining how Chuck would manage a whole day alone with two monkeys and still try to get work done. But everything is going well so far. I've been able to run home over my lunch hour to nurse so I don't miss them so much, and every day when I come home, all three boys are smiling.

Florida

Last week, we packed up and flew to Fort Myers with two lap babies for the last time before Nate turns 2. We were lucky enough to get an extra seat for Nate for both flights -- but still, flying with a toddler is no fun at all. Nate loved seeing all of his Vogel relatives, especially his cousin Brody, who is just a little bit taller than Nate. The two were best friends all week, chasing each other, giggling, swimming and bonding over Baby Einstein and Elmo.

Chillin' out after a long day at the pool.

Discovering the chip and dip table at the party together = nasty diapers later.

Flashing lights and classical music: crack for babies (and toddlers who are way too old for this).

On Thursday, we rented a car so we could take the kids to the park and to the beach, which was very windy. It was tough dragging Theo around in his car seat while chasing Nate, who wants to get into EVERYTHING (including strangers' toys), but we still had fun. 

Nate and Dad at Fort Myers Beach

Exploring ... and about to steal that bucket.

Dad and Nate at the park.

Theo will be 6 weeks on Thursday, if you can believe it. From what I hear, a newborn's crying is supposed to peak at 6 weeks, so we're almost over the hump. :) He is growing every day and is smiling a lot now. He also seems to be fascinated with his big brother Nate -- at least until he pokes his eye or pulls his hair. Speaking of Theo's hair, it doesn't seem to be falling out like Nate's did and is beginning to have a personality of its own.

My, my, my

Like lots of little boys, Nate has been slow to start talking, preferring instead to run around or examine/destroy things. He's always been a babbler, but his pronunciation was terrible and we could never understand what he was saying. In the past month, though, he's had a language explosion. It seems like he's picking up a few new words every day and now we can actually understand what he's saying! The newest word that is being used A LOT is "my." I suppose this comes from no longer being the only child and the need to constantly clarify what is HIS. So it's "my paci," "my Mommy," even "my baby." I find that cute, though, that he takes pride in having HIS own baby brother.

We've had a few rough nights lately, with Theo being reluctant to go back to sleep after getting up. Chuck and I have been trying to tag team so I can get a little sleep (it's been a months since I've had a stretch of sleep longer than four hours), but it's leaving both of us exhausted. Overall, he's been pretty good -- when he finally gets to sleep, he'll sleep for 3-4 hours.

It's hard to believe that in just two days, our little baby Theo will be a month old already. February is a short month, but still. Where did the time go? He's been smiling a lot while sleeping pretty much since birth, but just yesterday I caught him smiling while completely awake. We weren't making eye contact -- he was looking at something behind my head (I'm thinking the purple couch, which fascinated Nate too) -- so I can't consider it a *real* smile, but we're getting close!

Visitors

Theo and Nate both enjoyed having their Grandma and Grandpa Vogel come to visit over the weekend. Nate especially thought his Grandpa was super hilarious and loved that Grandma took him outside in the backyard every day to play fetch with Wylie. Theo still seems to be quite attached to his Mommy and can be fussy if someone else holds him, though he eventually warmed up to Grandma, especially when she rocked him. Theo appears to be a tad repulsed by his own father and tends to spit up on him every time he holds him. This might also be because Daddy is less gentle and likes to roughhouse 3-week-old babies. Theo's Great-Auntie Susie came up to visit from Charleston on Monday and he loved being held by her. She has the magic touch.

 Grandpa Vogel and Theo

 Nate and Grandpa Vogel at the park.

Theo had his 1-month checkup this morning, even though he's only 3 weeks old (something to do with insurance). So his stats are probably a little off of what he'll be at 1 month old next week. But he weighs 9 lbs and is 20 3/4 inches long -- both in the 25th percentile. I'm assuming that if his stats were taken on time, he'd be closer to 50%. But just to compare, Nate was 11lb, 2oz, and 22 inches at his 1-month appointment, which was on his actual 1-month birthday (see Our Big Boy). Theo definitely seems to be less hungry than his big brother was, and Nate also had pumped milk from a bottle, which Theo hasn't had yet. Babies tend to eat more from a bottle than the breast, especially in the early months. So, we'll see if little Theo will catch up to Nate or if he'll end up a runt like his Mommy was. :)

 Nate tries to give Theo some of his milk. 

Little Mister Diva

Nate and Theo are getting along really well. Most of Nate's jealousy seems to have gone away and I'm less concerned about him actually hurting Theo. However, this morning Theo was in his swing and Nate likes to point at all his body parts (ears, nose, lips, etc.). When he pointed at Theo's eye, I told him, "No, that hurts Theo," but Nate doesn't like to hear the word "no." So he kept poking at Theo's eye, which of course made him cry. But these episodes are happening less and less lately. The cutest is when Nate comes in our room in the morning, he'll peek his head over the bassinet and say, "Hi" to Theo in his most adorable little E.T. voice. It makes getting up at 5:30am totally worth it.