A Christmas Whirlwind

This was one weird Christmas for me. Wonderful, blessed and happy... but weird. It begins with the fact that this was the first year since I moved out on my own (age 18) that I really didn't decorate for Cmas. We did put up a tree and we even put lights on the tree... but that is about it. Luckily- my friends Deb & Tony sent us an ornament w/ all of our names on it- or we wouldn't have any ornaments on it! We also hung some garland w/ lights around the living room. I mean- I do have a 2 year old I need to think about here... Cmas lights are essential.

I was feeling a little guilty about the lack of festivity around here... but decided that the only one really thinking any thing of it is me and to let it go. Being that there have maybe been two nights since Oct 12 that I've slept for more than 4 hrs. straight... slacking on holiday decor is allowed. All Timmy cared about was getting a Cmas tree- which was something I definately wanted to put up.

There ended up being a little bit of a theme to our Cmas.... TRAINS. Geo Trax & Thomas all the way man! It was a lot of fun to watch Timmy get so excited. Tommy got spoiled as well... just wasn't able to show his excitment as well :)

Misc Pics of Cmas Celebrations

Museum of Science & Industry...TRAINS!

Not wanting to spend another day stuck inside because of this CRAZY cold weather, we decided to go to the Museum of Science & Industry. Bonus of the day... not only did Tim get in free (all IL school teachers get into the Chicago museums for free!) but that teachers can bring a guest in for free! Score!
We started our day off by going thru the tractor/farm exhibit. Timmy got to "drive" a big John Deer tractor and him & I also sat on a cow to get our picture taken (keeping those WI roots alive in him!). We saw a lot of thing but the best by far (and were we spent the most time) was of course where they had the trains set up. This is a HUGE model train display- with model city of Chicago & Seattle. They also had a big engine there- that we got to climb up and play in. It turned out to be the first engine to break 100 mph.
Timmy was amazingly good today. And this time- we actully got a picture or two of Tommy. (usually he is always in his car seat in the stroller when we are doing fun stuff downtown).
No more messing around though. It's a couple days away til cmas and I have major things to do yet!

PIcs from Museum of Science & Industry

Deb & Tony visit

My friends Deb & Tony came for a brief visit today. They are originally from Wisconsin but now live in Texas. They had plans to drive up to WI for Cmas and swung over our way to meet Tommy and visit. They totally went out of their way to make it here and it was such a blessing to see them again!! The last time they were here it was to meet Timmy when he was just a couple of months old. They haven't changed a bit (how do people do that??). Although I'm getting better about not freaking out over my "not so picked up house"... I still had to apologize for the condition of our house. That is when Tim told them they should come on over when we don't have a newborn. Then we are a little more put together. AIN'T THAT THE TRUTH!

(and I accidentally deleted the picture... I'll try to get a copy from them to post)

Pics of Ice Storm ... what a pain!! (Timmy had fun:)

Tommy Boy

Yesterday was Tommy's 2 month check up. He weighed in at a whopping 12lbs 9oz and was 23.5 inches (75th percentile for both height & weight). The doctor commented on what a happy baby he is (Tommy smiled at him the entire visit).

He still isn't the best sleeper, but he isn't the worst either. For awhile he was only getting up once (around 4am) to eat but that dream is long gone.

We love our "big" little guy!

Pics of trip downtown 12.14.08

A trip downtown

We love living so close to downtown. In about 20 or 25 min drive- we are in the midst of everything (but don't live there thank goodness). Yesterday (Sunday) we went to the Kriskringle Village. It was fun, I think the best part was the wonderful smell. But it was really, really crowded. So we walked along Dearborn and then State St. We saw ABC 7 doing their news and we stopped at D&D for a warm drink and snack (which put Timmy in a great mood). On our way back to our car, we saw a bunch of camera men standing outside this door. Turns out IL's wonderful (wonderful as in pathetic and embarrassing) Governor was inside the building and they were waiting for him to come out. So we waited with them. My closest experience to being part of the paparazzi ever! Turns out good ol Rod found a back door no one knew about. I wanted to ask him about the money he was sitting on that would go for paying for Timmy's (and so many other's) speech therapist. But he got away.

I'll post some pictures... Tommy was sleeping in his car seat the entire time so there are not pics of him what so ever. This has happened every single time we go downtown. I swear... we are taking him with us!

Another visit w/ Mikey

On Saturday we went up to Mikey's house (Tim's nephew)... which happens to be one of Timmy's favorite places on earth. One of the reasons is because Auntie Chris sets up Mikey's GEO Trax every time Timmy comes for a visit. I told Timmy last weekend that "next Saturday we get to go to Mikey's house to play Geo Trax" I told him this in an effort to leave Gammy's house (we were having a family birthday dinner and Timmy didn't want to leave Mikey's side). My plan worked great- Timmy stopped crying and made it to the car. The only problem was he thought we were going to Mikey's house that very moment. He was none to pleased when we pulled into our own driveway.

Every day this past week Timmy would ask "Timmy play w/ Mikey Geo Trax?" and I would have to explain that wouldn't happen until Saturday. WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS I THINKING?? How is a 2 year old supposed to have a sense of time?

Luckily- today (Saturday) came and Timmy got to play w/ Mikey & Geo Trax.

I have made mental note... don't talk about things more than 15 minutes ahead of time!!

Mom's nite out

A few of the moms from the mom's meetup/playgroup that the boys & I are a part of had a little Cmas party. It was a great time... wonderful food, tasty drinks and to top it off... we played Dance Dance Revolution. Yes, I participated. Made it thru all three rounds thank you very much. Bonus part... I didn't pull anything!!

Pictures 11.9.08

Where's the "PAUSE" button??

I know that time usually flies by really quickly between t-giving & Cmas- but this year it seems even crazier. I wonder if I will ever lose the feeling of being a day late and a dollar short. Sometimes I wish there was a secret pause button somewhere so I can push it and just take a deep, long breath. And really, really look at my boys. They are growing up too fast. Timmy is learning all of these crazy words. The other day we were eating lunch and he said, "hmmmm... delicious Mommy" Where the heck did the word delicious come from? It was the cutest thing! And Tommy... the boy is HUGE- so tall and really growing. He has the infant look- no more newborn. He loves to smile and he is starting to "coo" a lot more often. Nothing like a flash of his smile (sometimes he only raises one side of his mouth and does a kind of 1/2 smile... it's too cute) at 4am while you are feeding him. My favorite though is when he smiles so big there is a little dimple just about his mouth on his left side. One of the biggest prayers that Tim & I have said for both boys (starting before their births) is that they would be happy. A genuine happiness that is embedded in them. We also prayed that they would both be ticklish but that is more for our own selfish reasons :)

So... Cmas is coming at it's usual pace and I've decided to go kind of bare minimum on the decorations (less to have to put away later and less to have to keep Timmy out of... picking my battles). I'd rather have time to play or color or build a blanket fort.... which is the closest thing I have to a pause button.

T-giving Recap

I can't believe how quick this past week has flown by. We stayed in the area for T-giving this year. Our first time doing so! We went to Tim's sister's (Christine, Tom & Mikey) for a wonderful dinner. Tim's Uncle Mick & Aunt Toni came from MI and joined us as well... really cool to see them! A funny thing that happened during dinner... Tim sat next to Toni and accidentally splattered some sweet potatoes on her. Luckily Toni is a saint and laughed. A mere 2 mintues (if that) later- Timmy sprayed milk (via his straw) all over Mick- who was sitting next to him. A definately "like father like son" moment.

I also endured my first Chicago-land "Black Friday" shopping experience. I went w/ my friend Elizabeth (mom of Bella- Timmy's favorite playmate) and we were in Toys R Us by 5am. We hit a few more stores- having great success. I did miss how close the stores are in Oshkosh and there is definately less people out and about that day up there but at least there weren't any fights :)

"Broken Diaper"

So... I heard Timmy was up and ready to get out of this crib this morning. I walked into a dark room but could see enough to notice that Timmy's PJ's were unzippered. I turned on the light and yes- someone had unzippered his PJ's all the way to his foot! And there was no diaper on his butt!! Before I could say anything- he looked at me and said "Broken Diaper Mommy" I had to walk out of the room to not only get my camera but to hide the major giggles I had. Here is a video of when I walked back into the room.

Life is a blur

I can't believe it's the end of November. What the stink happened? Our Tommy is 6 weeks old already. He has seemed to become a little more high maintenance lately- crying a lot! But we are working thru it. Timmy is being a good sport about it. You'll often hear the words "Don't cry baby Tommy" out of Timmy's mouth. I think you can hear both of us (Timmy & I) give a big sigh when Tommy starts in. We've started giving him gas relief drops- hoping that is the problem.

I have to let you know about a really funny thing Timmy said the other night. After the circus, we drove to Tim's parents house to pick up Tommy. When Tim was inside- Timmy & I were waiting in the car. Timmy asked "Were Daddy go?" I said to go get Tommy. "No Tommy!" was his reply. And then he said... "No Tommy Please... Thank you" Gotta give him credit for being polite about it! Totally cracked me up.

No surprise- Tommy is crying. I'm experiencing a new level of tired. :)

The Circus

The circus is where we took Timmy last night. It's also how to explain what I feel like our life has been like lately. My apologies for being so bad about posting. I basically can get on the computer when it's nap time and this past week- Timmy & Tommy haven't coordinated their nap schedule so they aren't down at the same time. How about some bullet point updates...

• Timmy is starting to talk more and more. Due to our pathetic excuse of a state Governor (he has a 13% approval rating so I'm thinking it's safe to type that)... Timmy's speech therapist (Ms. Joy) isn't getting paid by the state. We have really good insurance and speech therapy is covered so out of her 20 clients- we are the only one she is getting paid for. It's hard for her to justify paying for a babysitter to watch her kids so she can work and not get paid. She is going to focus on trying to work on Timmy's drooling problem. She ordered some tools to help tone up his cheek/chin muscles. We'lhave ot see what happens.
• Tommy is HUGE! He'll be six weeks on Sunday and he is busting out of his 0-3 months clothes. He is such a tall boy! He is gaining weight just fine now... we seemed to have figured this breastfeeding thing out (although I feel by typing that I'll jinx it!). He's a good baby. Loves looking and listening to Timmy. Seems to cry a lot when Lucky Dog is to close to him. But that leads me to...
• A couple of weeks ago Lucky Dog was skunked- right in between the eyes. He smells much better than he did the night of the "encounter" but the dog still stinks. And lucky me- he has decided to start sleeping next to my side of the bed on the floor. I think the only good news here is that I no longer have to worry about Lucky's "gas problems" as the skunk smell takes over.

Tim & I are doing alright. We are figuring things out day by day- but are definately looking forward to T-giving when Tim will have a couple of days off. MOMMY IS SLEEPING IN!! He's a good man and I'm lucky to be partners with someone who is so supportive. Wish I could say the same thing about these nursing bras! (sorry men folk... had to be said).

Until next time....

Tommy's first smile

it's November 14... and my baby boy just gave me a couple of big smiles. He's just over a month old... what a lucky mom I am!!

9lbs 5ozs!!!

OH HAPPY DAY!! After three weeks of stuggling to gain weight, our little (well, kind of little) Tommy is finally back up to his birth weight! This means that the breast feeding is working out and our little guy is doing well. Yahoo!!

Being a Big Brother

So, Timmy's world has had some changes to it since the arrival of Tommy. He now has to share Mommy's time & attention. And although there are moments when he has a harder time w/ it than usual- I'm both relieved and impressed with how well he is doing. This little boy's heart is so good. And full of love. He loves to hold Tommy on his lap- although not for very long (but what does a 2 year old do for very long anyway??). But he will get Tommy's binky, a pillow for mommy (to feed), talk or sing to Tommy... so helpful!

He's recenlty added a new task. He will lay down next to Tommy during "tummy time" to help encourage him to pick up and turn his head. He watched me do it one day and decided that it was his job. Tommy just seems to love looking at Timmy- and he loves hearing Timmy talk. So- tummy time has turned into a fun time for all three of us!

So- life is swell. At least until Tommy starts getting into Timmy's toys! :)

Trick or Treat!

We took Thomas the Train, huh, I mean Timmy out trick or treating this year. He had a really good time- we only went down a couple of streets- but his pumpkin bucket ended up plenty full! I was a little worried that he wouldn't wear his costume but he did and he enjoyed it. When we were teaching him how to trick or treat, we would pretent to knock on a door by saying "knock, knock, knock" and then say "trick or treat." Well, each time he walked up to a door- he would just yell "KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!" but not actually knock on the door. It was pretty funny!

Afterwards, Timmy & Daddy had a good time sorting out all the treats. I think Daddy may have been eyeing up what was in the bucket! :)

Tommy came along for the ride- the neighbors needed to meet him so it was a great opprotunity as the temp was in the low 70's.

Halloween Pary 2008

Timmy & I had a fun day with just the two of us! (It's been sometime since we've done that!). The playgroup that we are a part of had a big halloween party. Although Timmy only wore his Thomas costume for about 3 minutes (it was too hot)- he wore his halloween shirt (compliments of Aunt Lois & Uncle Karl!) and fit in just fine. One of his favorite little pals, Isabella (or Bella) was there and the two of them played almost the entire time. Once 1pm hit- it seemed everyone was ready for nap.

We look forward to next year when we can bring Tommy along too- but this year was a good time w/ just the two of us. Enjoy the pics!

Awhile back we taught Timmy to give our (somewhat crazy) cat a kiss/hug but leaning in his head to her. That way she can sniff it and that will be that. But now... that is the only way Timmy gives out hugs & kisses- by leaning his head into you. Here is Timmy giving Tommy a kiss :)

A good time at Gammy & Papa's

We went over to Nancy & Tom's house last night to visit with Greg & Sharon (Tim's uncle & aunt) as well as Maria & Carl "Max" (Tim's cousin-n-law & her little boy). Max and Timmy are only a couple of months apart and they had a GREAT time playing together. And of course- everyone enjoyed meeting Tommy- who was alert and quite interactive.

The Haas's surprise visit

Saturday morning I got a call from our friend Leslie (who lives in New London, WI). Her, the hubby and her two boys were on their way to FL and wanted to stop by to meet Tommy and see Timmy. Timmy LOVES hanging out w/ Colby & Jordan (we went to the Milw Zoo w/ them in Aug). They weren't able to stay real long but it was an absolute delight to see them!!! The play room has taken a serious beating but all three boys had a GREAT time! And Leslie & Mike got to meet Tommy so it was prefect.

There is love!

Timmy is LOVING his baby brother... usually. There are some problems when Timmy would like something NOW but mommy (or daddy) isn't available and he actually has to wait. He's not a big fan of Tommy's crying either. Luckily- Tommy hardly cries.

We put a little stool next to the pack n play (in the living room) so when we are changing Tommy or when Tommy is sleeping- Timmy can check him out or see what is going on. He knows to be quiet and not to wake Tommy. Timmy just LOVES looking at him.

First family walk

We took our first walk today- as a family of FOUR. It felt good to get out of the house and who knows how many more decent days (weather wise) that we have left. Tommy slept pretty much the whole time. And Timmy got to play at the playground which is the best thing ever (don't you know!). :)

Announcing Thomas Karl Reising

Our little boy, Thomas Karl, finally made his well anticipated appearance into our world. I started getting contractions Sunday morning (oct 12) at about 4am. After having a couple of them- I decided to wake up Tim knowing that this was the real thing.

Because Oct 12 was the day of the big Chicago Marathon- we decided to head downtown right away to avoid all the traffic and the different street closures. Papa came over to pick up Timmy and Lucky Dog and off we went.

We made it downtown just before 6am- which was perfect because we missed the major street closures (which would have made getting to Northwestern difficult). We parked and called the doc- who told us to get in right away (contractions were 4-5 min apart and being that I was already 4 cm dialated four days earlier- not much time to spare). We walked in the hosptial shortly after 6am.

To make a long story short- after a whopping 10 minutes of pushing- our Thomas was born at 12:54pm. He was 9lbs 3oz. and 21 1/2 inches long. He is a tall baby- but absolutely beautiful.

Timmy seemed excited to finally meet Baby Tommy- and was worried when the nurse took him out of the room. Hopefully the love continues :)

TRAINS!!!

The Oak Lawn Museum had a model rail road club come in and set up a bunch of model trains for display. Due to Timmy's LOVE of trains- Tim & I took him there to check it out. The set up was small and simple- but that is probably why he loved it so much. He didn't say too much- just the occassional shout out... TRAINS!!

Afterwards we topped it off by taking Timmy to Snackville Junction. I have been there before with the mom's group and after seeing how much Timmy loved it- really wanted Tim to go there with us. Snackville Junction is an old fashioned diner- and a model train comes out of the kitchen and goes along the counter and brings your food to you. And... if you been good- a basket of suckers come out when you are all done. It was a great way to spend what turned out to be our last day as a family of three :)

Take 1... a no go

So... I mentioned to Tim how I seem to have a lot of fluid leaking but I don't think it's that big of a deal. But we decide to call the doctor on call anyway. She tells me I should go into triage to make sure my "bag of water" isn't leaking. Gammy & Papa come over to get our toddler (whom we had just put to bed!) and off we went.

Tim drove downtown with such ease- we made it to the hospital in like 20 minutes! I had a feeling this was a waste of time but knew we should follow the docs orders. I just HATE being told by doctors that everything is fine- go home. (stems from all the times the neurosurgeon I had when I first moved to Chicago kept telling me my CT scan was normal and I should just go home... only to fall into a coma on THREE different occassions afterwards!).

It was our first time inside the new triage... man was it a step up from the old one!! This new hosptial is SSSWWWWEEEEETTTT!!! Long story short- I have an infection (which they gave me a pill for). The baby is in position and ready to go- my body just didn't start the process yet. The doc on call gave us an option to be induced last night. If we would have opted yes- I very well could be holding my baby Tommy in my arms right now. But alas- we are hoping mother nature takes it's course. I have an appt next Tuesday and will set up a time to be induced then- so if that is the route we are going to take- it will happen none the less. But this will give things a chance to happen on their own.

I walked out of the hospital (12:30am...good times) with all sorts of emotions. What do you expect from a pregnant woman?? :) But I came to realize it is a LOT of pressure for pregnant women to know what the heck is going on w/ their bodies all the time. It was good we went in so I could get the antibiotic for the infection- but still felt like it was a big fat waste of time. I've had moments wondering if I made the right decision not being induced but like the doc said- there was no medical reason to do it and none to not do it.

I am just going to hug this baby Tommy non-stop when we finally get to meet him!

Joliet Pumpkinfest

On Sunday (yesterday) we went to Joliet's Pumpkin fest for a few hours. The day started off overcast and it did eventually rain but lucky for us- the community theatre group was doing a performance in a building at the same park. The play was based on the four folk myths (from four countries) that brought on today's Halloween traditions (i.e. trick or treating, costumes...). We made it thru 3 out of the 4 acts before Timmy decided he no longer needed to sit. I was so impressed with how long he lasted!! The play itself was really, really good- entertaining!

I was a little surprised at how "icky" some of the park's decorations were. But Timmy didn't seem phased by them at all. Part of the movie The Dark Knight was filled in Joliet- and they had some of the vehicles that were in the movie there (a squad car, ambulance & a truck).

To view more pictures- check out this link: http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=7z4gsrl2.5xajinfm&Uy=ddmbbd&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&UV=56771171806_551894082210&localeid=en_US
THANKS AUNT LOIS FOR THE PUMPKIN SWEATSHIRT... IT WAS PERFECT!! (you gave it to us when Timmy was just a wee little guy)