Zoo Day

Friday, the boys and I went to the zoo with some friends. When Reese found out we were headed to the zoo that day, she put signs all over the house telling us not to go to the zoo. She was not happy that we got to go while she was at school.

It was a perfect day for the zoo. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time with our friends.

Reese asked that we take a picture of the giraffes. When I showed her this picture she said, “There was a two headed giraffe?” Haha!

The zoo recently added a splash pad so Sam wore his bathing suit to play in it. He was a little timid at first but then ended up enjoying it.

Our sweet friends that we went with have unlimited rides on the carousel and train. They gave us some bands to be able to ride for free too! Sam was so excited!

Hayes had a good time too. We sat in the peacock seat on the carousel and he thought he was such a big boy.

And the train! Always a favorite! Hayes wanted down so bad but did a great job sitting with us.

What a fun day with my little men and friends!

First Day of Preschool

Today Sam had his first day of three year old preschool.

He also started at a new school this year. We moved about 25 minutes away from our old house so it was just going to be too much to continue going to the old school. I was very sad about that because we had such a great experience there. Both kids learned and grew so much. I hope we have the same experience here.

This morning Sam did not want to go to school. When I told him it was time to get ready he ran away from me. When I came to find him he had a mad face and actually yelled, “I am not going to school! I am staying home with Mommy!”. Sam is usually a sweet and polite little man but he was not having it this morning. I just ignored him and started to get him ready. To be honest, I don’t know if that attitude was real or not. I know he was nervous, I could tell that on his face, but he did as he was asked. Once we were ready he was happy to go outside and have his picture made.

When we pulled up for him to get out, his eyes got big and he kept trying to give me hugs and kisses...we had already said our goodbyes a couple of times. I had to push him towards the door so the teacher could get him out of the car. He didn’t cry and walked right in but I felt bad having to give him a little shove out of the car. I can’t wait to go get him and see how his day went. I know he is having a blast. He just likes to “stay home with Mommy”.

Nine Month Stats

I finally got Hayes to his nine month well check last week. He really hasn’t grown too much since his six month visit. He weighed 20 lbs, 5 oz. and he is 28 3/4” tall with a 17 1/2” head circumference. So basically he gained one pound and grew one inch. It was funny that at Sam’s nine month visit he grew the same way that Hayes did…only gaining a small amount of weight. With Sam, they were concerned and told me to nurse him more often, etc. With Hayes, she didn’t really seem concerned at all. I guess since he is chunkier they figured he had more wiggle room. Ha!

*He wears 12 month clothes

*Size 4 diapers

*Is cruising around the furniture like a big boy.

Fourth of July Celebration in August

A couple of weekends ago we went to a Fourth of July celebration that was rescheduled for August due to the bad weather. We had a great time.

Reese got to do the trampoline

Sweet, easy-going baby

Reese watched a family of singers on a little side stage

The kids cheered me on…

…as I did the zip line

A hot sweaty mess of a family

Watching the fireworks…Hayes even enjoyed them

Success!

We have had a successful first week of school. Remember, last year days 2 and 3 were the hardest of the week. I am happy to report that these last two days have been just as easy as the first days, if not easier. Reese has been happy to wake up, get ready for school, and get on the bus. She runs off the bus with a huge grin on her face too. Reese has had a lot of great things to say about school. Yesterday the school counselor took all the new kids on a scavenger hunt in the school. They saw where the principals office was, etc. and they met the administration and other school employees that they don’t see on a regular basis. I also got an email from her teacher saying how well behaved and precious Reese is. 

It has been fun at home with the boys too. I told Lance I had forgotten how well Sam entertains himself and how imaginative he is when Reese is gone. However, he has been a little rough with Hayes the last couple of days. Each morning and afternoon Sam has put on a backpack and carried his lunchbox to the bus stop. I think he wishes he could go to school with Reese.

While Sis is away, Hayes will play. I caught Hayes pulling all the books off of Reese’s bookshelf. That is one of his favorite things to do.

I am so happy this new transition has gone so well for Reese. Lance and I have been so proud of her this week. But keeping it real, the evenings have been rough. I know it will take a few weeks for this transition to smooth out because Reese is so tired at night. She is pretty mean to Sam and by the kids bedtime we all need to be asleep.

First Grade

And we are off! The school year is officially in swing.

Last Friday we had meet and greet at Reese’s new school. We met her teacher and walked around the school so she could get acquainted with it. Her teacher seemed nice but I don’t think she is going to be the lovey-dovey type that Reese has had in the past. When I told Lance that he said “Good!”.

Throughout the week she has been super excited about school. Every once in a while she will look at me and say, “I’m nervous!” and every time I tell her that is OK. While at meet and greet we walked in to the cafeteria, out of no where she sat down on a stool and said, “I don’t have any friends here!” and started crying. It broke my heart. After I took a deep breath I told her she would make many new friends and then told her we would buy her a bow in the spirit wear.

This morning I went in to wake her up and she popped up with the biggest grin. Her eyes were sparkling and she was ready to start the day. She said she was nervous a couple of times but seemed excited at the same time.

While sitting at the bus stop she just watched the other kids but didn’t really want to talk. I decided that I didn’t want her sitting there thinking about the unknown so we talked about all the things we did know…like the color of her bus, what specials she would have, where things were in the school, etc.

I know Reese is having a great day at school and learning so many new things. I just can’t wait to see her get off the bus this afternoon!!

Nine Months Old

The Hayesy Baby is nine months old today. I don’t even know how that is possible! This little guy is pretty chill most of the time. But he can flip the switch in a second when he is not happy. He is learning and growing so much, so fast. We don’t have his well visit for a couple of weeks but in mid-July he weighed 20 pounds, 2 ounces.

At nine months:

*He is a happy little guy.

*I think he is trying to cut two more teeth because his hands have been in his mouth a lot lately. As a matter of fact, he grinds his teeth during the day. I think it just feels funny to him.

*He has a lot of hair! It is starting to get curly in the back just like Reese’s and Sam’s did.

*He can climb the stairs. Last night I got a video text from our babysitter of him doing this. The text said, “He can climb the stairs already?!” I responded and said, “Not before today!”

*He eats mostly table foods now. He does not want to be left out of eating. If everyone else is eating, he will whine until he gets some too. He eats all three meals with us even if it is just a little bit. He still nurses five times a day.

*He loves to be held and snuggled.

*He is sleeping so well at night. He goes to bed between 7:00 and 8:00 each night. He was sleeping until 7:00 in the morning but has started waking up earlier now. He takes two naps a day and they are any where from one to two hours each. I think this is going to be a great schedule for us once school starts.

*He gets so excited when Lance gets home from work. He starts kicking his legs and squealing.

*He doesn’t take a pacifier at all now. Once we started having him cry it out at night he gave it up. He is the first one out of all three that never really cared for a pacifier. I used it with him for a little while to keep him calmed down and the keep his fingers out of his mouth but he usually tried to refuse it. I am happy not to have to fight that battle later.

*He does great with a straw and will drink water out of a cup.

*He loves to pull up on anything he can get his hands on. A couple of times I have seen him let go and try to stand on his own.

*He explores the house when he is feeling adventurous otherwise he likes to stay pretty close to Mama!!

*Lance swears he said “ma-ma” one day. I was out with the big kids when Hayes woke up from a nap and he cried and cried. Lance said he looked at the door and cried “ma-ma”. I have not heard him do this though!