Foto Friday

The best thing about having a second child is seeing the bond between the siblings. Itty absolutely adores his big brother - no one can make him smile bigger or laugh harder. Especially when big brother 'plays' with him as they were doing in this picture. For almost 30 minutes, Itty sat in the corner of the chair mesmerized by Bittyman's antics.

(Remind me of these days a year from now when Bitty is throwing a fit because Ittyboy has destroyed his Thomas the Train layout...)

Not Again

Mattel Inc., Recalls 800,000 Lead-Tainted Chinese Toys for Third Time

This is getting ridiculous. And we have yet to receive the forms we're supposed to fill out and return with the Go Diego Go toys from Mattel's first recall.

Anyone care to join us in a Mattel boycott?

Ironically, as I was typing this post, I received an e-mail from the RC2 Corporation (makers of Thomas the Train), updating me on the status of Bitty's recalled Thomas trains. One click and I was directed to a web page listing all of the toys we had returned and the scheduled shipping date for their replacement. (In the meantime Bitty has received a complimentary train AND a refund check for the return postage.)

Mattel could learn a few things about customer service from RC2.

Foto Friday

No new photo, but an explanation of the photos posted on Wordless Wednesday.

About a month ago, when we walked into our local Super Wal-Mart,we were accosted stopped by a woman gushing over my gorgeous boys. She was,of course, an employee of their portrait studio.

She peeked my interest with the teaser "$5.88 for 35 Photos" package. Ittyboy was in a good mood and he hadn't had any professional pictures taken yet so I bit.

The catch was the $5.88 package only applied to the first picture shot. Although I was hoping to catch one of Itty's trademark open-mouth smiles, I was still thrilled with the top picture.

The picture of me holding Itty above my head? Totally candid. Had I known I was going to be photographed I would have run a brush through my hair, but I love Itty's huge grin as he grabbed my shirt. The photographer was so happy with the shot she gave me a free sheet in exchange for permission to use it in her portfolio.

And the final photo speaks for itself. Men will only pose for pictures for so long! (But the look on Bittyman's face as he tries to hold his squirmy brother and cheese it up is priceless!)

Wordless Wednesday

Contest Crazy!

(Yes, I realize I missed Foto Friday. I was too busy celebrating our 11th Wedding Anniversary. I'll make it up this Friday, promise!)

I'm almost tempted not to post about this contest because I love the prize so much and don't want anyone else entering, thus lessening my chance to win...

But that would be bad contest karma, wouldn't it? So surf on over to Musings of a Housewife for your chance to win a GORGEOUS Eliza Grace bag!

Contest Time... Again!

(Yes, I realize it's been a bit contest crazy around here, but you won't be complaining if you win one of these prizes!)

Sniffing newborn's head,
a primal urge takes over--
try not to eat him.
- from Haiku Mama

I thought I was the only Mama with the urge to devour her sweet-smelling baby! What a clever haiku (a mode of Japanese poetry with a 5 syllable/7 syllable/5 syllable pattern for those who have forgotten) from a gifted blogging Mom.

Absolutely Bananas is giving away two copies of Haiku Mama. If you write your own haiku and post it in the comments section you'll get an additional entry. Here's mine:

Writing a haiku
while nursing at the keyboard—
Multi-tasking Mom!

Flex your Mommy braincells and go enter the contest—and post your haiku in my comments too.

Parenting for Profit

Note to self: Next time a Matchbox car sneaks its way into my shopping cart, it may be a cash cow for Mama if I can eBay it with a clever auction!

Contest Time!

The gals over at Apples' n' Oranges are giving away a really cute 'babes in black' onesie. Surf on over and check out all of their items!

Contest Time!

Lorri is having a contest at The Mac and Cheese Chronicles! She's giving away two different planners - and you know how I love anything having to do with organizing!

Foto Friday - Happy 4 Months, Ittyboy!

Although Daddy brings home the bacon and Mama provides the milk, no one, and I mean no one, makes Ittyboy smile more than Bittyman.

Today the boys 'played' cars - and by 'play' I mean Bitty buried Itty in Little People vehicles. And while my first instinct was to lecture Bitty on the dangers of being rough with the baby, the lecture would have been drowned out by the sound of Itty laughing HYSTERICALLY as his big brother smothered him with love.

Foto Friday

Itty's Theme Song

Remember the Jim Henson show, Dinosaurs? Well between his big eyes, chubby thighs and enormous grin, Itty is our own Baby Dinosaur - Gotta love him!

Foto Friday

Let's hear it for the boys!

Contest Time!

Think I can go 2-for-2 this week?

Apples' n' Oranges is giving away a cute "give peas a chance" onesie.

Ittyboy would look adorable in this - and it would be quite ironic as I still don't give those nasty little veggies a shot at my palate!

Recalling Summer of 2007

What I will recall most of all about the summer of 2007 is, well, all the recalls. First it was the Recall of Thomas the Train Wooden Vehicles and Train Sets Components. Just announced yesterday is the Fisher-Price Toys with Lead Paint Hazard Recall.

Not only did Bittyman receive several of the recalled Go Diego Go! toys for his birthday, but we just gave one the recalled Dora toys as a gift.

Now I'm no rocket scientist, but doesn't everyone know that lead in paint isn't safe? And haven't we known this for, like, a few decades?

So far, RC 2, makers of Thomas the Train, are winning the customer service award. This week Bittyman received a letter from their CEO and President, apologizing for Bitty's inconvenience and informing him that they are working as fast as possible to replace the 8 trains he shipped back. In the meantime, RC 2 enclosed a 2006 Limited Edition Toad as a token of appreciation for his patience and loyalty.

The Fisher-Price website has pictures of their recalled products... but the link to the page where a form must be filled out in order to "receive a brochure to assist you in identifying whether your product is affected" and "receive a pre-paid electronic merchandise return label to send back your product, if it is affected" is not working.

Apparently the employee who put the lead paint on their toys is also in charge of their website.

I Won!

I'm an Organizing Junkie (one of my favorite blogs even before today), held an online contest and I've won a year's subscription to the new periodical, Organize Magazine!

Could I have won a more perfect prize? Organizing is one of my passions. I almost cried when The Container Store in my town went out of business. One of my favorite possessions is my P-Touch Labeler. And I actually follow the FlyLady system. (Except I had to unsubscribe from her hourly e-mail reminders to banish clutter - they were cluttering my inbox!)

Many, many thanks to Laura at Organizing Junkie for hosting the contest.

Foto Friday

Now I'm no child development expert, but I thought that was pretty amazing coloring from a 4-year-old boy!

Foto Friday

Bittyman attended his first Vacation Bible School this week. Four hours a day of games, art projects, music and chocolate treats (judging by the mess on his mouth when I picked him up each afternoon).

Since this was the very first time Bitty had been involved in an activity away from Mom and Dad (other than his weekly Sunday School class) I had a huge list of projects I intended to accomplish with my Bitty-free time: Painting the kitchen, a deep cleaning/purging in Bitty's room and making tie-blankets for the boys.

But instead I spent the week showering Ittyboy with undivided attention, trying to cherish each newborn moment before it's gone.


In the blink of an eye they will BOTH be attending Vacation Bible School. Then I'll have no excuse for white kitchen walls. But for now I'm proud of those walls. They mean this type-A personality took time to stop and smell the baby.

I'm 3 Months Already?!?

Foto Friday

We enjoyed a festive 4th decked out in our Old Navy Flag T-shirts/Onesies. (If only I knew how to work the timer on my camera I'd have gotten a family picture!) Despite the heat we headed to the heart of town to watch the fireworks then stopped at Baskin Robbins for 3 of their 31 flavors. (Itty got his flavor from Mommy - Peanut butter fudge milk!)

God Bless America

I grew up just 13 miles outside of Washington DC. Every July 4th we'd head to the Naval Annex parking lot and watch the amazing fireworks over the skies of our Nation's Capital, just like those pictured above.

On this day more than any other I'm homesick. No city celebrates the 4th like Washington, DC.

This year we'll be enjoying the local firework show from the comfort of our air-conditioned minivan as the temperatures here in the desert soutwest at 9pm will still be in the triple digits. Excessive heat warnings and newborns don't mix.

God Bless America and God Bless our military and their families! Happy 4th of July!

Foto Friday

Got Books?

This is my new favorite website. No gimmicks, no spam, no advertising - just a way to swap your old books for new ones. Simply create an account and start posting the books you are willing to swap by their ISBN number (the number on the back above the bar code). You earn 3 credits for the first 9 books you post. Use the 3 credits to request your first 3 books from other members (who ship the books at no cost to you).

When another member requests one of your books, simply print out a 'wrapper', tape it around the book, put media-mail postage on it ($2.13) and send. When the member receives your book you'll earn another credit to use.

And yes, it really works. I've already shipped off one book and received another!

So clean off your bookshelf and get some new (to you) books for your summer reading pleasure! Click on the link above and you'll help me earn additional credits. Itty spends a lot of time nursing so I need more books!

Blog Business

I started this blog as a way to keep friends and family updated on Bittyman's life. Obviously my mission now includes the adventures of his little brother, Itty, as well.

I included a PayPal donation button on my sidebar in case someone wealthy happened to come across my blog and decide to subsidize my stay-at-home Mom lifestyle. (Sadly that hasn't happened yet.)

There are also links to Amazon which would earn me money... if anyone ever clicks through them. (So if you're going to shop from Amazon, surf here first and search using the Amazon button so I get credit, por favor!)

I've now discovered a more important reason to blog besides bringing a smile to the faces of those who love Bitty and Itty - Winning free stuff! 5 Minutes for Mom is sponsoring a July 4th Giveaway with a bunch of great prizes for those who post a button on their blog's sidebar. (The contest is also open to those who don't blog so surf on over!)

Just don't plan on winning the new Land's End swimsuit. That's all mine, baby!

Foto Friday

I'm Clean!

Thanks to Ms. Wendy and the loan of her super-cool glider seat:

So those of you who forgot my birthday are off the hook... for a bouncy seat anyway. Only Starbucks or iTunes gift cards will get you back into my good graces now!

Hell Is

our Fisher-Price Kick 'n Play bouncy seat dying. (And yes, we tried replacing the batteries. The seat plays when kicked, but there's no bouncy in the seat.)

Sunday was my birthday. (I can hear the collective "DOH!" from here, judging from the number of birthday cards that I received.) But it's not too late to make amends. I'd like this for my birthday.

Don't think of it as a gift for Itty. Think of it as daily showers-in-a-box for Mommy.

Happy Father's Day!

Wishing Daddy, Grandpa I., Grandpa E., Uncles Tony, Bob, Tom, John, Andy, and Tony (yep, two Uncle Tony's) a relaxing Father's Day!

FYI

Recall of Thomas the Train Wooden Vehicles and Train Sets Components

If your kids have any trains or vehicles from the Thomas the Train line, check out the link. There has just been a recall of 26 different items due to lead in the paint - 1.5 million toys in all.

Bitty was bummed to learn he has 8 of the recalled items, including his favorite Red Hook & Ladder Truck. We packed up the trucks and trains and will ship them back tomorrow. The items are supposed to be replaced within 6-8 weeks but I have a hunch it'll be Fall before Bitty receives his new trains. Every kid in his playgroup has at least 2 recalled items. Sir Topham is going to be busy on the Island of Sodor processing all those trains!

Flashback

This morning I showed Daddy my latest photos of Itty, including the one I posted yesterday. Daddy immediately exclaimed, "that picture looks just like the picture of Bitty at Mammoth Lakes... wasn't he about the same age?"

Sure enough, this picutre of Bitty was taken when he was 8 weeks old:


Call Ripley's - I have twins born 4 years apart!

Happy Two Month Birthday, Itty!

Obviously we've got another little cheeseball on our hands! Thanks, Uncle Tony & Aunt Cristie, for the great Harley Davidson onesie!

Foto Friday

This week we're enjoying a visit from Daddy's older brother and his family who drove all the way here from Green Bay, WI. Bittyman had never met these four female cousins and he's basking in all the attention. He has since proclaimed, "I love my girls."

He is especially smitten with Diana, who is just 6 months older than Bittyman. And from the looks of it, she's got a cousin crush as well.

Third Time's a Charm

Foto Friday

I'm Free!

Well, released from my OB's care anyway. I'm 6 weeks postpartum and, according to my doctor at this morning's appointment, back to 'normal'.

'Normal' to me is still 12 pounds away, but I joined Weight Watchers online and my goal is to really be 'normal' by our trip to Mammoth Lakes in July. Four days into The Plan I've had no problem staying within my allotted 'Points' for the day. Being a breastfeeding Mommy helps - I get 10 extra points a day for nursing! That's 70 Caramel Quakes! (Any woman on WW will know exactly what I'm talking about.)

Now that my OB has given me the all clear, tonight I'll be doing the one thing every woman desires after months of waiting...

relaxing in the hot tub!

(What did you think I meant?!?)

Missed Photo Op

Bittyman, sitting on his bed with t-shirt raised, 'nursing' his stuffed dog!

Foto Friday

Itty is already 5 weeks old. He's grown out of 'Newborn' sized diapers and we've had to adjust the car seat to accommodate his increaseing length. He's also smiling up a storm... unless you point a camera directly in his face!

Foto Friday

Photo by Bittyman! He is the first person to capture Itty smiling on camera!

Mama's Milk - It Does A Body Good!

Itty's Stats, 3 weeks ago:
Weight: 6 pounds, 15 ounces
Height: 19 inches

Itty's Stats, today (one month check-up):
Weight: 8 pounds, 12 ounces
Height: 21 1/2 inches

Itty's not quite so itty anymore! (Although compared to his big brother he's still itty-bitty!)

Happy Birthday, Bitty!

Itty's Baptism

Itty was baptised this past Sunday. Godmother Lisa was present from Florida and Grandpa I. stood in for Godfather Damien who was back in Green Bay taking finals this week.

Itty slept through the entire Mass, only waking for a brief minute when the holy water was poured on his head - then he yawned and went back to sleep. He still has that heavenly scent of balsam chrism. *sniff*

Afterwards we enjoyed a delicious brunch at our favorite breakfast restaurant. Again, Itty slept through the festivities - which gave Mama a wonderful gift of a hot meal with no interruptions!

Foto Friday

Itty's first bath - which he really enjoyed, contrary to his expression!

Brotherly Love

I Can Bring Home the Bacon...

Stay-at-home mother's work worth $138,095 a year.

Can I get that in small, unmarked bills?

Blog Silence Day

Foto Friday

Happy One Week, Itty!

Bitty & Itty

Happy Birth Day, Itty!

I'll see you real soon, Ittyboy! Can't wait to finally meet you!

(Childbirth in the 21st century... blogging before heading to a scheduled C-section!)

Itty Eve

Very surreal to think this time tomorrow I'll be holding Itty.

Today I'm going to try to take it easy. Daddy has been cleaning all morning long so I wouldn't be tempted! Grandpa is going to take Bitty to the park so he doesn't go stir-crazy being cooped up in the house while I rest. Tonight we'll all head to Grandma & Grandpas where Bitty will spend the night since I have to be at the hospital at 5:30am. The C-section is scheduled for 7:30am PST, so set your Outlook reminder and send up a quick prayer for a healthy delivery!

Itty pictures to follow when I return home, which should be Thursday or Friday.

And Wait Some More...

Nothing new to report.

I'm very bored being on 'house rest'. So post your favorite internet time-waster in the comments section to help keep me entertained!

And Wait...

This morning I returned to my OB's to have my blood pressure re-checked and it's even higher than yesterday (148/98 for those interested). I was immediately sent across the street to the hospital where Bitty was delivered for a fetal assessment. After 30 minutes on a monitor and an ultrasound, Itty is declared to be absolutely perfect. He's even practicing 'breathing', which is only done by a small percentage of babies while in the womb. So he's just fine and ready to come out at any time.

My blood pressure lowered to 130/85 while I was there, about what it was yesterday. Higher than my normal 120/75 but not dangerous.

The Fetal Assessment nurse's recommendation to my OB was that I stay on 'house rest' for the weekend and have the scheduled c-section Tuesday morning. My OB was in surgery at the time of my assessment so I'm now back home waiting for her to call.

I'm still having random contractions... or my water could break... or the phone could ring and my OB might tell me to meet her at the hospital in 2 hours...

Have I ever mentioned that I am a fairly impatient woman who likes to be in control of most situations? This week has been a real test for me!

In the meantime I veg on the computer, playing with my new baby gift that just arrived from Uncle Tony, Aunt Cristie, Ev and Tori. Thanks, guys, you really shouldn't have! (But sooo excited you did!)

Hurry Up And Wait...

My back has been aching for several days. Back labor or too much nesting?

Real contractions began last night - the kind that actually push your pulse-rate up. 30 minutes apart until I got a few quarts of water down, then they slowed to every 45-60 minutes.

At this morning's OB appointment, the good news is I didn't gain any weight in the past week (which might indicate retaining too much fluid). But the bad news is my blood pressure was elevated, even after lying on my side for 10 minutes and checking it again.

I had pre-eclampsia the final week of my pregnancy with Bittyman so I'm at high risk again.

I'll head back to the OB tomorrow morning for another blood pressure check. In the meantime I'm on a no salt and no caffeine diet until Itty arrives. I'm also under orders to head to the hospital if the contractions get to 20 minutes apart because of all that's going on.

Babies born on Friday the 13th are extra-lucky, right?

Define 'Nesting'

Is is considered 'nesting' if a pregnant woman:

Cleans out the fridge
Does 4 loads of laundry
Fills 2 garbage bags full of items to donate to charity
Washes the fronts of all the kitchen cabinets AND
Re-organizes a shelf in the garage?

How about if you add painting the stairwell banister to that list?

Anyone want to take bets if I'm going to make it to that scheduled repeat C-section on the 17th?

Heck, anyone want to hire me to do their spring cleaning?

Easter Pictures

No Easter Itty. So now that Daddy returns to work tomorrow (and the chance for paid paternity leave is gone), our hope is for a labor-free delivery with Itty waiting until the scheduled repeat C-section on the 17th!

Happy Easter!

37 Week Update

No change from my 36 week appointment other than a 3 pound weight gain as Mommy indulged in too many scoops of ice cream this past week!

Baby seat is installed, bassinet and bouncy seat are assembled, and bags for Grandma's and the hospital are packed. Now we wait to see if Itty wants to arrive on his own timetable or per the scheduled C-section on the 17th.

Guess Itty's Birth Day!

When do YOU think Itty will arrive? Post your guess (one per person) in the comment section!

HINTS:
My actual 'due date' is April 24.
My c-section is scheduled for April 17.
Bitty was born on his exact due date (40 weeks gestation).
I had contractions for 2 hours last Monday night but none since.

The winner will receive... um... the satisfaction of knowing they are a winner! (What, you were expecting a year's supply of Rice-A-Roni?)