Fun Photo Friday // Celebrate

This week was one of celebrations.  We had Mother's Day on Sunday.  I came downstairs for breakfast and Quentin yelled "ta-da!" instead of the practiced "Happy Mother's Day!"  Albert gave me a cute card with Quentin and Albert's hand prints and Wyatt's foot print (since he generally likes to keep his hands in a fist).  He also gave me a nice jewelry set with Wyatt's birthstone, aquamarine.  

Also on Sunday, I was called to be the 2nd councilor in Young Women's so I'll be busy with that.  I'm happy that I'll still be teaching on Sundays.

Friday was our 5th wedding anniversary.  Albert gave me a sweet new iPod and I gave him permission to buy a new DVD player.  He's much better at researching such things and has more of an opinion on electronics.  We went out to eat at Outback, which went pretty well.  No major breakdowns.  

The kids and I went to playgroup on Thursday while Albert went to the dentist.  Quentin went down the slide twice and then hung out by me the rest of the time.  Friday morning I took Quentin with me to zumba for the first time in months.  I just about died and my abs were so sore, I felt sick.

Quentin has started to say "hold you now!" instead of just "hold you." He also said "hold you tight" which was pretty cute.  

Wyatt is more and more alert and aware of people around him.  He loves to look at his dad and will crane his neck to see him when he hears his voice.  We also bought him a new swing that he seems to like.  He seems to be getting better about sleeping and is waking up usually two times a night.  Of course there was that one night where he woke up five times and Albert ended up staying home during the morning so I could get some sleep.

Fun Photo Friday // Smiles

W smiling for the camera

Wyatt has been pretty gassy again, which means a lot of crying and wanting to be held and nursed constantly.  Luckily it seems to have subsided for now.  He's been smiling a lot lately, which is super cute.  It's really hard to catch them on camera because they only last a second.  He even will smile when Albert is tickling him.

Quentin is learning so much all the time.  He says short sentences now.  He used to say "Mom, I'll pick it up," which really meant "Mom, pick it up."  He has now dropped the "I'll" since it isn't what he meant.  When we tell Quentin something he doesn't want to hear he'll say "okay, bye."  He also likes to talk to Wyatt.  He'll put his face really close to Wyatt's and says "Hi, Baby!"

He is also really good at saying the last words of sentences in books and songs.  I'm always surprised how fast he learns a new song or book.  He likes the male part of "A Child's Prayer" and sings along with a lot of it.  It's so cute when he says "heav'n." 

We went to Toddler Time at the library, but we were 15 minutes late, which is substantial when it only lasts 30 minutes.  Quentin had fun, but was really loud in the library.  He was excited to see the plane and dragon hanging from the ceiling and yelled "Plane! Vroom!" and then "Dragon! Roar!"  He doesn't really understand speaking quietly.  Anytime he sees a train (usually on tv) he'll yell "Choo! Choo! All Aboard!."

On Monday we went to Target and the Dollar Tree and survived.  I had to put Wyatt in the Ergo Carrier because he was screaming when we got inside which prompted a lot of looks.  I'm slowly trying to get out more.  I'm not sure if it promotes sanity or not.  Every time I got to the store I end up coming home without something I was sure I bought, but didn't even make it on the receipt. 

On Wednesday I had my 6 week check up with my midwife and everything looks good.  I was looking forward to going to zumba on Friday since Albert would be home to watch the boys, but it was cancelled :(  I'm going to have to motivate myself and get out my new Jillian Michaels workout videos I bought during pregnancy.  On Thursday I had to get a tooth refilled.  It's a real bummer that not only do you have to worry about getting new cavities, but then you also have to get old ones redone every so often.

Recipe of the Week: Grandma's Ebelskivers

Every Christmas as a kid we would go to Utah and visit my Grandma who would make ebelskivers on Christmas morning.  I made them in 2009 from a recipe I found on-line, but this year my mom sent me my grandma's recipe.  She's a full Dane so her recipe has some legitimacy.

Quentin LOVED them and ate like eight of them, which is quite substantial for an almost two-year-old.

Ingredients:

• 2 c flour
• 2 T sugar
• 2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t salt
• 2 c milk 
• 3 eggs, separated
• oil for cooking
• ebelskiver pan and hook (I used a fondue fork)

Directions:

1. Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl.
2. Whip egg whites to a stiff peak.
3. Add milk and egg yolks to dry ingredients, mix until incorporated.
4. Folk in egg whites.
5. Preheat pan on medium heat. Add 1 T oil to each cup.
6. Ladle about 2 T batter into each cup.  Cook until edges are browning.  Use a hook or pick to turn and cook until golden brown.

Brothers Comparison: First Month

Some people ask me if Wyatt looks like Quentin did when he was a baby.  They have different eyes and mouth, but they do look like brothers and are looking more alike the older they get, we'll see how long that lasts.  Both are super cute :)  Since Quentin was born at 41 weeks and Wyatt at 39 weeks, Q was a lot bigger.

Here they are minutes after birth:

Here they are when they were a week old:

Here they are when they were two weeks old:

Here they are at three weeks old:

Here they are at one month old:

Fun Photo Friday // Take deep breaths

Quentin "reading" to Wyatt

Saturday was my first time taking both boys out of the house by myself.  We just went to the grocery store, but it ended up being a good experience.  Wyatt was actually awake, but content to sit in his seat and Quentin actually sat in the front (he usually likes to sit in the back, but W has taken over the entire cart).  It didn't hurt that they were giving out all sorts of samples that day so Q was busy eating cake and crackers.  I didn't attempt it again the rest of the week, maybe next week.

We had planned on going back to church on Sunday, but Albert had to go into work early that day so I decided to wait a week so I didn't have to be by myself in Sacrament meeting the first week back.  Quentin, Wyatt, and I had a little picnic in the back on the new grass.  It was great weather and the shade covers that area in the afternoon so it was great.

Quentin throws things whenever he gets frustrated or mad and has hit his brother more than once with various toys.  We've tried everything to get him to stop, but haven't been successful.  Our latest idea is to have him take deep breaths when he gets mad.  When we see him getting mad we say "take deep breaths in and out."  When he does it he runs out of the room, something we never told him to do.  It does work when he chooses to do it and we catch it in time, but usually he just ignores us.

I try to get Quentin to "help" me whenever I'm doing something he can do.  He is very good at holding the dust pan when I sweep and he is also good at making rice in the rice cooker.  It's very important when you're half Filipino to know how to make rice.  He is good at pouring anyway and that is 90% of making rice.

Wyatt is getting so big.  I guess I'll be saying that every week until he's 18 or so, at least 18 months old.  He's getting little rolls on his thighs and under his chin.  He loves laying on his play mat and can be totally satisfied for 20 minutes, which is a lifetime for a 5 week old.  His night time sleeping habits haven't changed.  He still wakes up 2-4 times a night, mostly depending on when I go to bed, which is highly dependent on Albert's work schedule.  When he gets gassy it's impossible to lay him down for more than five minutes without him crying.  I have to keep telling myself that this too will pass.  It's always hard when you're going through something to remember things change all the time, especially with babies.