Gigi & Papa Visit!

I always say how lucky we are to have such an amazing family here in Cali, but we also have Christian's family back in Chicago who are just as wonderful!  I just wish they all lived closer!  We try to keep in touch on Skype and through lots of text and pictures, so the kids can stay connected between visits.  But having them here in person is just so much better. So we were all beyond excited when Gigi and Papa came to visit a few weeks ago.  They wanted to meet baby Dylan and spend some QT with the boys. 

The boys LOVE their Gigi and Papa!  And they know that when they come to town, they will be showered with love and spoiled beyond belief by their grandparents.  And this time was no exception.  The boys got tons of special time with Papa at Coffee Bean, lots of reading time with Gigi, a trip to the pool, breakfast out on Sunday and of course their annual trip for hot dogs, toy shopping and a visit to Fuzzywigs candy shop!  I'm pretty sure Don bought out the entire Disney Store for the boys!  And little Dylan got in on the action too....she was held by both of them the entire weekend so she was in little-baby heaven. 

Even Christian and I were spoiled.  While they were out with the boys we enjoyed a toddler-free lunch for our anniversary, followed by shopping without two active boys.  That in itself was a treat!  Then that night Don made us a fantastic dinner.  I didn't have to cook or do the dishes...woo-hoo!  And the next day we went to my sister's wedding while they watched all three kiddos for us.  It was a much-needed date night for these tired parents. 

It was so great to have Gigi and Papa here for the long weekend!  Needless to say we all miss them a lot.  I wish we could see them more often and I know the boys feel the same way.  They are so loving and supportive of us. We really couldn't survive without them.  Hopefully we can see them again soon!  Here are some cute pictures of the weekend...

The boys counted down the days until Gigi and Papa's visit....literally! Here's the countdown calendar that Christian created for them...

On the way to the Disney Store!  The boys were giddy with excitement...

 Jack was so proud of his loot...

Gav couldn't contain his excitement...

The princess was spoiled by Gigi...

And mommy...

 

 

 

And daddy too...

 



 

 

Papa made us grilled tri-tip, twice baked potatoes and fresh steamed broccoli for dinner.  It was so delicious I even had seconds of the broccoli!  I don't remember the last time I had a second serving of vegetables!

 



 

 

 

Jack got a little preview of dessert...

 



That's my boy...

 

Jack eyed the strawberry shortcake dessert that Gigi made for us...

Dylan's official first portrait with her Gigi and Papa.  I have one for each of the kids...

All of our munchkins with their grandparents...

I LOVE this picture!  Gigi and Dylan took a little catnap on the patio.  So precious!

A little bonding time with papa...

 

 

And finally, here's a little live-action sneak peak into our weekend fun...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMo-AYwiCQo&feature=youtu.be

 

Dylan is 2 Months Old!

 

Dylan's 2 month pic!  She's such a happy girl in her pretty yellow outfit.  I love it!

Dylan turned 2 months old on Saturday! Sadly, I missed it because I was in New York for work.  I felt so bad not being there but let's be honest, she had no idea I was even gone or that her blog post is a few days late.  But now that I am back to work I am going to have a hard time blogging, but I owe it to her to do as much as I did for the boys.  I'll do my best to keep up in between mothering, wife-ing. cleaning, working and traveling.

So our little angel had her 2 month check up on Monday and she's doing amazing!  She's slowed down a bit on her weight and only gained just over 2 pounds this month bringing her to 12 pounds, 15 oz.   But instead of 90th percentile she's at 75th....which is still pretty big.  And she's continuing to get really long...she grew 2 inches this month bringing her to 23 and 3/4 inches.....still in the 90th percentile.  So overall she's still a big girl!  She's only 2 months and already wearing 6 month clothing....oye vey!  I grow 'em big for some reason!

Since I had to start traveling already I had to wean her off breastfeeding.  It was a little earlier than I wanted to but she has handled the transition really well.  And honestly, I am really glad to have closed that chapter in my life...it was never really my thing but I did it for the kids.  And our sweetie loves the bottle so everyone wins!

Dylan is smiling and talking so much these days.  She loves to lay on her back and talk to her little animal friends or talk to us.  Its nice to have a bit of break now that she lets us put her down.  But she still prefers to be held and can get pretty fussy when we don't pick her up right away.  We're hoping she calms down a bit more and doesn't need to be held all the time.  But on the plus side, Dylan is an awesome sleeper!  I still haven't put her on the best schedule during the day but at night she's a champ.  She sleeps for 7 or 8 hour stretches at a time which is heaven for me. I predict she'll be sleeping all night in the next 2 weeks....hopefully!

I actually caught her smiling on camera several times this past week so I have some great pictures to share.  She still looks so much like Jack but she's starting to look more like a girl which makes me very happy.  And she has the softest, squishiest skin ever...so much better than the boys did.  No eczema for her, thankfully!  I just love her to bits and can't get enough of her!  Having 3 kids is no joke, but she's so worth the trouble!!  Here's our adorable little butter ball in all her happiness...

 

A sweet moment with her big brother Jack.  She really responds to him...

The first time in her crib.  She lasted for about 5 minutes before she freaked out.  She's still in our room and I am just not ready to have her in her crib yet.  I can't explain it but I just want her to be with me at night right now...

I'm loving all of her smiling these days...

Bathing beauty...

 

Gav loves taking pics with the baby.  I'm just not so sure she loves taking them with him...

But with Jack she's all smiles...

He really adores his sissy...

Dylan's favorite place to sleep is in her carrier.  She'll sleep in there for 2 to 3 hours.  I love this picture because she's asleep but smiling and has one little foot sticking out...

Happy girl!

Random Stuff About the Boys...

I have so many blogs I want to write, but with work, the kids and just living life, I have had no extra time.  And these days I would rather sleep than stay up late blogging!  But since I post so much about Dylan, I have a backlog of cute pics of the boys I want to share.  Just some random photos of what they have been up to the past 2 weeks. They actually just came off an awesome visit with their Gigi and Papa from Chicago but I will have to do a separate post for that because they had such a jam-packed weekend! 

Before I share pics I need to post Jack's 4 year stats.  He had a great well-check recently and he's in perfect health.  His doctor was so amazed at how big he is - she said he was too far off the charts to give me a percentage!  He's currently 44 1/2 inches and almost 49 pounds!  And he wears a size 6!  What a beast.  But she was equally impressed with his personality and intelligence.  She said we have a pretty great kid on our hands - but we already knew that!  We're so lucky to have him as a son!!  Ok, so now on to the pics...

The Boys in their matching Chicago White Sox tees and Under Armor shorts from Aunt Melanie.  They LOVE the clothes she sends them because they are super comfy...makes it very hard for me to get them in button-downs!

My little surfer dude!  He's been quite the handful these days but still so darn cute!  He's doing really well in school though.  He loves his teachers and they love him right back...

Jack is such a big boy now - he's growing so fast!!  Definitely not a little guy anymore....sigh...

Jack is loving Pre-K!  He has had several field trips which make him feel like such a big kid.  Here he is with his girlfriend Chloe Belle on a walk to get a vanilla milkshake...

Check out Jack in the back of the line....as you can see he is a good head taller than all his class mates.  And with that blonde hair he stands out like a Viking soldier...

Christian said he was the only kid in the class to finish the shake!  Why am I not surprised...

Jack adores his baby sister!  He's so sweet with her.  When I was taking pictures of her in her cute outfit he asked if he could jump in.  I think he looks quite handsome here...

Again, he wanted to jump in a picture I was taking of Dylan and Chris.  I love this one...

Both boys are really into printed tees and PJ's. They especially love these Target specials they got for Pajama Day at school!  They want to wear them every day, even if they have syrup plastered all over them...

Unlike Jack's sweet relationship with Dylan, Gav is still fascinated (or slightly obsessed) with her. I caught him bugging her during tummy time, even though I told him to leave her alone...he didn't know I was watching.  But at least I know he loves her which makes me very happy!

And last but certainly not least....here's a video of the boys dancing to the theme song from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!  We never really let them watch the show but somehow they are obsessed with it and have all the action figures and tee-shirts!  This is hilarious!  Enjoy...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0WBxpRofmI&feature=youtu.be