Weeks 23 through 24

I didn't think I'd get to do an update for another week because I'm studying for a test that's next week, but as luck would have it, I forgot my book at work today, which makes it impossible for me to study tonight :-)

There actually hasn't been a whole lot to update on in the past two weeks, other than 3 milestones:
1. Keaton rolling over:  On Saturday I put Keaton on his belly and walked away because he tends to not fuss as much if he doesn't think I'm there to pick him up.  I was just a few feet away in the kitchen but I couldn't see him all that well.  After a few minutes I walked back over to check on him and he was laying on his back playing!  So the first time he rolls over for me and I missed it!  I imagine he's probably done this before at daycare but I'll pretend it was his first time.  Hopefully I'll actually get to witness it soon!
2. Pooping in the potty:  We have been really struggling to get Lexi to poop on the toilet.  She has no issues whatsoever pooping in her underwear or even just laying one out on the floor!  But for some reason she would not go in the toilet.  Aunt Nikki and Aunt Stacy got her to go one time a couple of months ago, but she never would go for us.  We tried bribes of candy and movies and then even sunk to threatening no movies.  We tried bringing her in with us to go potty so she could see it's totally normal.  Nothing worked.  Then on Sunday afternoon she was supposed to be taking a nap and she came out of her room to let me know she peed.  She had indeed peed her pants but there was also a little dingleberry (sorry TMI) so I ran her to the bathroom and sat her on the toilet.  Even though she technically didn't poop on the toilet, she got the effect and saw how excited I was for her.  Later that afternoon we were at my Grandma's and she told Brian she was pooping.  He scooped her up into the bathroom and luckily it was a slow mover so she hadn't gone yet.  He set her on the toilet and she went!  We all made a big deal out of it and she could tell we were super excited and proud.  Then Monday she pooped in the toilet at daycare too!  I don't think she went today, but at least she knows now that it's not that bad.  Hopefully we'll make some good progress in the next few weeks.
3. Enrolled in Preschool:   Since Lexi will turn 3 before September she's eligible to start preschool in the fall.  Although the school district in Morton is great, there isn't a lot of selection for preschools.  Fortunately my co-workers wife is a teacher at a preschool in Peoria that's really close to my work.  So we decided we'd enroll Lexi there.  She'll go 4 days a week in the mornings and then I'll take her back to daycare in Morton.  It's going to be a lot of driving for me, but I think it will be worth it!  I toured the preschool and it's pretty awesome!  Lexi also got to visit when we went to church on Sunday.  She loved the kitchen area and dollhouse they have.  I think it should be a pretty smooth transition!

Keaton is growing so much each day.  I've been putting a lot of pressure on him (and myself) lately for him to get to that next level because I'm so afraid he's behind.  I told myself I wouldn't do that this time around, but it's so hard not to.  I do have to remind myself though that he was born about 3 1/2 weeks early so that does probably put him a little behind his peers.  Plus his personality is so laid back I just don't think he cares as much as Lexi did!  Brian keeps telling me I just need to be thankful that he's healthy, especially given all the concerns they had when I was pregnant with him.  He's totally right and I'm going to try to think positive :-)  I know he'll get there eventually.  Even though he may not be ahead of the curve in development, he's definitely the sweetest baby I know!  He's so happy and has the best smile and laughs.  I actually think Lexi and him sound a lot alike when they laugh!  I just look at him and want to snuggle him because he's so darn cute!  

I haven't been very good about writing down Lexi's quotes but here's a few I can remember:

Me:  "I love you Lexi"  Lexi:  "I love you more Mommy.  I miss you.  I'll save you."  All said while giving me a great big hug and kiss.
"I don't think so" (in response to me saying time for bed).
"Come on Mom" (in response to me telling her no more books before bed)

Pics from the past 2 weeks:

Finally laying on his belly and lifting his head up!

So happy!

Mommy/daughter afternoon, trip to Build-a-Bear

Silly goose!

Love this little girl so much!

Road trip to Bloomington

Happy Valentine's day!

All my babies!

Weeks 20 through 22

I'm really late on my updates this time!  Keaton hasn't been up to too much lately.  He's starting to play more with his toys and really seems to like holding on to rattles.  He hates tummy time!  I swear he won't be crawling until he's a year old.  He just doesn't seem eager at all to do anything much other than hang out in our arms or lay on his back and play!  I think that's just the nature of his personality though, so no matter how much we work with him, I don't think it's going to make much of a difference. 

I feel  like he eats so much!  I can't remember Lexi eating this much!  But I feel like he's not really growing that much either.  He still fits in a lot of his 3 month clothes and a lot of the 3-6 month clothes are still too big!  Maybe he'll hit a big growth spurt here pretty soon. 

Every time I look at him I just know he's going to be such a sweetheart!  Isn't it crazy how parents just know what their kids personalities are going to be like even this early on.  I swear I could see it in Alexa's eyes the day she was born.  Okay, maybe not that early, but at least by a couple weeks old I knew she was going to be stubborn!  Then by a couple months old I knew she'd be cracking us up!  With Keaton, he just has the sweetest eyes and when he smiles they light up and he actually bats his eyes at you.  It's so incredibly cute and his smile is just contagious!

I think last update I mentioned Keaton had a cough.  Well it turned out at daycare they had a couple cases of RSV.  In fact, one of the little boys in Keaton's class had it and ended up in the ICU for a week.  I was really scared Keaton might have it too and we were getting ready to head out of town for the weekend so we took him to the doctor to get checked out.  Luckily it ended up being just a plain old cold.  We did all the home remedies we could though: vapor bath, Vicks on the chest and feet, humidifier, Vicks plug-in, propped bed, and saline drops in the nose.  It sure is hard having a sick baby!  But he made it through :-)  Nana took good care of him while we were out of town for the weekend too!  I just feel very fortunate that he didn't have RSV!

It seems like the illnesses come in waves.  Right after he started getting over his cold he got some bug where he was pooping 6 to 8 times a day!  This led to a severe diaper rash.  Poor guy!  As soon as we set him on the changing table he would cry because he knew a diaper change was coming.  This lasted about a week before he went back to normal and the rash started to clear up. 

Like I said, the illnesses come in waves, so right after Keaton's pooping/diaper rash went away, Lexi started getting spots around her mouth.  She has horrible skin (gets it from me) so we weren't too terribly concerned right away.  The next day she had a blister looking thing on her mouth.  Again, not completely out of the ordinary because she tends to have really chapped lips.  But then another day went by and she got more spots (kinda like pimples) and then her nose got crusty on the outside and it look infected on the inside too.  We kept putting Neosporin on it but it wasn't getting much better.  So finally we decided to take her to the doctor.  Turns out she had Impetigo.  Luckily it's super easy to treat with an antibiotic.  Now her face is finally clearing up!  She was looking pretty rough for a few days there!

Here's some of Lexi's latest phrases and antics:

"What happened to my face":  When she had the blister on her lip, she looked in the mirror and in a sad voice touching her lip she said "What happened to my face?"
"Excuse us"
"You promised"
"I want to do it like Flynn Ryder/Rapunzel" - Sometimes when she gives us a kiss she says this!
"Ohhhkay, ohhhkay" - I can't really explain this one in writing because the funniest part about it is how she strings out the "okay"!
"Fist pump" - Every night before bed Lexi goes potty and then comes running into Keaton's room where I'm feeding him and says "Mommy, I did it.  Give me high five.  Fist pump."  And we have to fist pump twice!
Brian asked Lexi one morning as she's standing next to Oscar: "Is that your doggie?"  Lexi responded:  "Uh huh, I love him."
"Keep your hands to yourself!" - Brian was rubbing Lexi's back and she firmly told him to "Keep your hands to yourself!"
Sleeping commando - Well, not completely, but as soon as we put her to bed (in her pajamas) and shut the door, she gets out of bed and takes her PJs off!  She pretty much hates wearing clothes and only wants to wear PJs or leggings and T-shirts when she does have to wear clothes.  She hates shoes and socks and takes them off immediately when she gets home! 
"I'm busy now" - She says this quite often.  The other night as she's walking around in my high heels she said to Brian "Seriously Daddy, seriously.  Dad, I'm busy now."
"I want something else" - Usually meaning she wants something else to eat.
"My angel" - She has a glow seahorse and for some reason lately she's been calling it her angel. 
"Hakuna Mata" - She's been watching Lion King lately and loves this song!  She runs around singing "Hakuna Mata, hakuna mata, hakuna mata!"
Breaking the iPad - I actually am guilty of putting the first crack in the iPad but the other day Lexi dropped it again.  I think I must have said "you broke it" and she responded by saying "I'll fix it.  I was just trying to watch Panda."  There was no way I could stay mad!
The other morning we were watching the Mickey Mouse Club and an elephant came on the TV.  Lexi said "Elephant!  Like you Mommy!"  But later that night she was looking at the Victoria's Secret catalog (she thought it was a "book") and she was pointing at the models and saying "There's Mommy."  So I was an elephant in the morning and a supermodel that night!  Gotta love the mind of a 2 year old!

Pics from the last couple of weeks:

Need I say more!