Goodbye Old House!

Dear Pemberley and Waverley,
Oh little ones! Daddy and I are so excited to move you both into our new house in Kansas City, Kansas! I will post some more details about the move later (it went GREAT, thank the Lord), but I wanted to take a second and show you the house that you both started your lives in. You've seen bits and pieces of it in random pictures, but here are the professional photos from the listing agent so you can see all of the rooms.

Daddy and I bought this house waaaay back when we started dating in 2012 (after only three months of dating, believe it or not!). We've put a lot of time and love into it, and honestly never thought we would move so soon. But since Daddy's job at BPU has a residency requirement, we decided to make the move sooner rather than later. I can't wait to show you pictures of your new home! Three out of the four bedrooms upstairs need serious coats of paint (they are the worst shades of yellow, green, and orange), but our family will grow to love our new house as much as we loved the old one. 
All my love,

Waverley | Five Months

Dear little Waverley,
How are you almost half of a year old already?! This was my favorite month of yours, by far.

At five months, you...

-weigh 15 pounds, 2 ounces (48th percentile)

-are 27 inches long (96th percentile)

-wear size three diapers

-are in six month clothes,  but can still rock a few three month onesies and rompers

-have just about gotten over the stranger danger phase, but still prefer to cuddle with your mommy!

-can roll from back to belly like a champ

-are drooling and teething like crazy

-have finally decided that it's not the end of the world if you have to take a bottle

-fall asleep completely on your own, but still wake 3ish times a night

-have the cutest little face!!!!!!!

This was a huge month for you, sweet girl! You went to daycare for the first time EVER (how blessed was I to have almost five months with you, though?!). I was so incredibly nervous (we are talking nervous-to-the-point-of-a-mental-breakdown kind of nervous) because you outright refused a bottle. I was legitimately scared you would starve yourself and I would have to quit my job and the end of the world was coming, et cetera et cetera. At one point, you would scream and scream and scream if you even saw the bottle! Daddy and I tried five million different types (okay, not five million. Seven. But bottles are expensive!) before you settled on the Avent Natural. I had to pump and feed you three bottles a day before you finally decided that you wouldn't, in fact, starve while I went back to work.

And I guess we all learned a valuable lesson from that horrific experience. You learned that we'll try anything to get you to eat, and we learned that you won't eat until you're damn good and ready. Well played, Wavie Bug. Well played. I am so happy to tell you, though, that daycare reports that you're just the happiest, sweetest little squish during the day! Which makes this mama so proud.

I love you, sweet girl. After the colic and the bottle refusing and all of that, it boils down to love. You are perfect for our family, and Daddy and Pemberley and I know how special you are because you remind us every second of every day. Pemberley has especially warmed up to you these past few weeks, and affectionately calls you "Way-Va-Wee" and it melts my heart when you look at her in response. You're such a happy girl, and I really do fall more in love with you every day. I'm so glad you're ours!! 

We have a lot of big changes coming with our big move next month, and I'm anxious to see how our family takes it all in. I think, though, that out of everyone, you'll adapt the quickest. I hope you love your new home, little girl! I can't wait to see how much you grow and change in the next month!

With so much love,

Mom Confessions

Dear Pemberley and Waverley,
This has been a day-drinking kind of week (and it's only Wednesday), so I feel like a shared post on "mom confessions" is in order.

1) I had grand plans for this summer with both of you. We were going to go to water parks, the zoo, and cute clothes shopping.  In reality, those plans have turned into playing in the bathtub or sink, petting the dogs and cats, and cleaning out the closets. It's too freaking hot to go anywhere.

2) I am so over breastfeeding. I will continue to do it until you self-ween, Wavie Bug, but I'd be lying if I said I enjoy it. I'm ready to have my body back to myself.

3) Mom guilt is real. Even though #2 is totally true, I still feel guilty about it. And I feel guilty because you, Waverley, are not getting the same newborn attention that Pemberley did when she was tiny. And I feel guilty because you, Pemberley, are not getting all of the toddler attention that I feel like you need, either. 

4) We've made coffee runs to Dunkin Donuts more times this summer than I'd like to admit. (And so what if we were all most likely barefoot for them?)

5) You two will be starting daycare in three weeks when I go back to work. Pemberley, you did awesome at your trial run last week, so I'm not too worried about you. I think you'll do better around more people anyway, because you're a little social butterfly. Waverley, though...I'm scared I'll be getting a "Please-come-get-your-daughter-she-won't-stop-crying" call a few hours after Daddy drops you off. You're a total mama's girl.

6) Bedtime stories have kind of gotten the shaft this summer, mostly because it's hard putting two kids to bed at the same time. The Very Hungry Caterpillar has been read as follows: There once was a caterpillar. He was hungry. He ate a bunch of food. Then he ate a big leaf. He got very fat, and built a cocoon. Then he became a beautiful butterfly. The end. I will do better once things calm down, I promise!

7) Nothing says it's time for a jumbo margarita like walking in to get you after a nap, Pemberley, and finding out that you've smeared your poop all over yourself and your crib sheet.

8) Accidental Amazon purchases to date by you, Pemberley:  $5.66. I don't know why you thought we needed a subscription to Oprah's e-magazine, or a copy of The Nightmare on Elm Street, but okay.

9) I love you girls more than the world.

Lovelovelove,

Waverley | Four Months

Dear little Waverley,
I have no idea how you're already four months old. You have such a sweet little personality, and you're getting so big! It's so much fun watching you learn new things, and I love seeing you grow before my eyes.

At four months, you...

-weigh 14 pounds, 1 ounce (48th percentile)

-are 26 inches long (89th percentile)

-have a head circumference of 16.9 inches (99th percentile)

-wear size 3-6 month clothes

-wear size 2 diapers

-have gotten SO MUCH better at letting other people hold you

-still LOVE watching Pemberley 

-are a great lover of naps and sleeping at night

-found your toes!

-have rolled from back to belly a few times

-enjoy reaching for the hanging toys on your play mat

-must be starting to get some teeth, because you constantly have your fingers in your mouth and dribble everywhere :)

-have the PRETTIEST blue eyes!

Sleep: Even though we're in the middle of a leap and the four month sleep regression, you're still quite the champ when it comes to sleeping! I limit your wake time to about 90 minutes, and you take three naps during the day: the first one is about an hour/hour and a half, the second is about 2 hours, and the last is roughly 45 minutes. I've recently started putting you in your pack and play, swaddled with your arms out, when it's nap time. Daycare won't let you sleep in a swing, so I figured it was time to break that habit. I was nervous because you've always loved your swing and napped really well in it, but you're doing so good! I put the projector on along with white noise, and you babble and clap until you tire yourself out and fall asleep. 

Nighttime babbles: As much as I hate to admit it, you seriously crack me up at night. You wake usually twice, once around 1am and again about 6:30am. The 1am wake time is literally the cutest thing. I can hear you moving around in the P&P, and before long, you're just babbling away. You coo and talk and shriek, and you're just the happiest little thing! And you have the BIGGEST smile on your face when I pick you up and put you in bed with me and Daddy. Sometimes you'll fall asleep eating and I don't have any issues putting you back in the crib asleep, but there are other times when you wake up as I'm putting you back in there. And again, you're so happy! I let you talk yourself to sleep, and then just lay there, thankful that you aren't a hot crying mess anymore ;)

Little Miss Tears: Well, at your four month appointment, even your doctor remarked that she's never seen a baby who has stranger danger this bad and this young. Any time someone you've never seen before tries to hold you, you put on the saddest little face and start crying. BUT! You have gotten better at letting some people hold you, though. When Gigi and Papa G were here a few weeks ago, you let Papa G hold you for a long time! And you let your Grandma Joanne hold you too. I can't tell you how much better that makes me feel, knowing you'll be going to daycare in a few short weeks!

I think that's all for now, my sweet little Wavie Doodle. I really can't believe you're already rolling over and trying to sit up. It seems like just yesterday you were this teeny tiny newborn, and now you're practically driving and going off to college. (Maybe a *bit* of an exaggeration, but seriously, time just needs to slow down!) I love you so so so much. I can't wait to see what you're doing at five months!

All of the love in the world,

Four Months of Sisters

Dear Pemberley and Waverley,
You have been sisters for four months now, and I can barely remember a time when you two weren't. Seeing the two of you together is the best feeling in the world, and it's only going to get better from here on out! (And Waverley, I promise you are not nearly as terrified of Pemberley as you look in these pictures!)

 

It took me awhile to get used to basically seeing double, because the two of you were practically identical newborns. I put together a few comparison pictures and had Daddy and your grandmas try to guess who is who in them. They're harder than you might think!

Left: Pemberley - Right: Waverley

Left: Waverley - Right: Pemberley

 

Over the past four months, there are some phrases I truly can't believe I have uttered, mostly directed at you, Pemberley. These include:

-Fingers do NOT go in your sister's eye/mouth/ear/other eye/nose/other ear.

-No, her paci does not belong in the dog fountain.

-No, Waverley does not want your Cheez-It.

-For fuck's sake, she doesn't want your boogers, either. 

Pemberley, you adore your little sis. You're always walking up to her and saying, "Baby! Baby!" about an inch from her face. You love looking at my phone to see her picture, and you have gotten super good at hauling ass around the corner to see what's going on when she cries out. Your gentle touches have also gotten A LOT better, which I really, really appreciate. You didn't even mind too much when she yanked some hair out after you practically body slammed on top of her.

Waverley, you LOVE looking at Pemberley to see what she's up to. You've gotten really good at turning your head to follow her around the living room, and you are constantly turning your head to follow her voice (like that one time when she went "HIIIII-YAAA!" and roundhouse kicked her sippy cup across the kitchen floor, or the other time when she was walking around singing Bieber at the top of her lungs with a snack cup on her hand in a very Captain Hook-esque manner).

Daddy and I can't wait for the day when you two walk to the park holding hands, or when you're both stealing each others sharing clothes and reading the same books. For now, though, we'll take all of the sister snuggles we can get!

I love you both so much,