February 2009

Ryan is Walking!!!

This was the day Ryan took his first steps. I was lucky enough to get it on video. We were so proud:)

Ryan's First Dessert for his Birthday

Above is Ryan's first birthday party. He was very neat with his dessert.



Ryan had a bit more fun with his second party:)

January 2009!!!

January 2009

Wow!! Looking back, January was a super busy month for us!!!

We had great visits with both sets of Erik's parents. Erik's mom, Susan stayed with us for about 5 days at the end of December/beginning of January. She was so wonderful as to watch our kiddos while Erik and I actually went out for New Years Eve for the first time in YEARS!! We went with my friend Melissa, her hubby, and their friend to Ruth's Chris. I was so worried that I would be passing out at dinner, but we did pretty well. It was fun, the food was great, and I really enjoyed the adult conversation.

Alex joined Susan at the end of the week, so we got to spend time with both of them. Reid LOVES his Grandparents, and they are so gracious as to give him their undivided attention. He is in such heaven when they are here.

The following weekend we got a visit from Erik's dad, Larry, his wife Charlotte, and their son Josh. That was lots of fun too. We hadn't seen them in a couple of years and had a really nice visit. They blessed the boys with a new train table, so one of the days was spent assembling that!! 3 adults, and a couple of hours later, it was up and running. Reid is SOOO happy as that is probably his favorite thing to play with ever!! We also went on a trolley tour of St. Augustine, which was very fun. It is amazing that we live here and yet never experience the history that is around us.

This month, Reid went to his first concert. It was the Imagination Movers, who n are a music group who sing kid songs with nice adult sounds. They have a show on the Disney Channel that Reid loves and rocks out to all the time. The concert was an interesting experience. My friend Melissa went with us and we had GREAT seat, 3rd road and right on the center aisle where they kept coming by us!! Reid wore his mover suit from Halloween, and we got a couple of comments on it (I am so proud!!). Anyway, once the show started, Reid was like a deer in headlights. Where normally, he dances at home, at the show, he was frozen. He did manage however, to give one of the guys a high five, which I thought was AWESOME!! Anyway, it was a great time, and I think he enjoyed it. That night I shot a really funny video of Reid rocking out with his new guitar and using his grandma's cane as a microphone. Reid is now singing to music. It is hard to say if he will be a singer or not, but I love that he tries!!! His favorites are James Taylor, Imagination Movers, and Jack Johnson.

Since Reid turned 3 he got to move up to a different Gymboree class. He gets dropped off for this class, which is bittersweet for both of us. It is a sports class, so he is learning about different sports. Reid isn't so sure about being dropped off, but he is working with it. He really enjoys the class once we get past the dropping off.

We are definitely enjoying having a 3 year-old most of the time!! He can definitely get an attitude with us, but not too often. I love that we can now have coherent conversations, and he can tell me what he is thinking or feeling. It is also fun to see him being enthusiastic about learning. His favorite show at this time is a documentary show called Extreme Trains. It is an hour long show about different trains. He is also enjoying reading a book about different trains. It's fun to see where his enthusiasm goes. We started flash cards this month with the Alphabet. They are Thomas the Train flash cards, so it helps keeps Reid's interest. He actually knows most of the letters, and has been bribed with a new train when he learns them all:)

The final new thing with Reid is that he finally learned how to pedal on his bike!! He can do 2 laps around our pretty large block. That was exciting because we are planning on getting him a real bike before the summer.

Ryan got his first haircut this month!! He was getting shaggy!! He did not really enjoy the experience, but he got a new friend out of the deal; a little blue hippo blanket. He also looks adorable with his new cut!!

He is doing all kinds of new stuff. He finger walks with us and is pushing things around such as the laundry basket, chairs, his shopping cart while walking. We can't really get him to walk alone yet, he just collapses to the ground. He is doing his first sign which is more and he claps (they are pretty similar, you have to use context clues). This kid is addicted to Gerber puffs and would eat an entire container of them if I let him!! We are working on his eating as he seems to only want to eat sweet stuff like fruit and yogurt. He does like Mac & Cheese, broccoli, and cheese quesadillas though.

Ryan turned 1 on the 26th of this month!! It is kind of surreal that our baby turned 1. It is nice to see him being more independent, and finally starting to sleep better!! He is the sweetest and snuggliest little boy. He loves to play with his brother (who isn't always very fun to play with:). He is definitely holding his own against Reid though!! Ryan has an impressive temper and an impressive voice!! He knows how to scream, and has not been afraid to use that!!

We had 2 little parties for him. One with my Dad, Pam, and Uncles Bruce and David. Ryan enjoyed the cream cheese icing on the banana muffins I made. He LOVES his sweets:) He helped open his presents too!! He had a really good time I think, and so did we. The second party we had was with my sister and my Mom. That was also fun. He got to experience chocolate and got a bit messy!! He didn't eat as much as I thought he would, but he did enjoy it for sure.

This month Ryan got two vaccines, a HIB and a Hep B. He weighed 21lbs 4 oz at this visit. We have been trying to figure out what is going on with his bowels, he tends to get constipated on a regular basis, and it is painful for all of us!! I feel awful for him. I have started putting flax oil in his yogurt in the morning. I think that seems to be helping.

In other news, we FINALLY got a water softener. I know I am an adult, because this excited me beyond belief!! Our glasses were white and awful. It feels so nice to have nice glasses again!! I also got a new lap top!! This was a wonderful thing because our other one was 4 years old and was SLOW, causing me to go crazy!! I got a purple lap top thinking that with all the boys around me, I need to get girly stuff where I can!

Erik was STILL waiting on his official CPA license to arrive, hopefully soon!!

I have done a lot of reflecting this month. We felt such a sense of celebration with Ryan turning 1. We have had a crazy year, and we not only celebrated the fact that Ryan turned 1, but also that we survived this first year complete with anxiety attacks, heartburn, NO sleep, and Erik's CPA certification. We are so very blessed and even though our last year was hard for us, we really have NOTHING to complain about. We are stronger as a family and realize how truly amazing our relationships are.

PS. if you click the picture above, this is our January photo album.

November 2008

November 2008

We had quite the exciting month in November!!

Reid turned 3!! It is amazing that he is already 3, it has gone by so fast!! We celebrated by taking the family to Disney World for the first time. My sister, Carolyn, her husband Rollin, and the boys cousin Claire joined us along with my Mom and Stepdad. We went down there on Friday afternoon and had Reid's birthday dinner at a new restaurant called T-Rex cafe. It is similar to Rainforest Cafe, but with Dinosaurs. It was a fun place!! Reid got to take home a new dinosaur whom he named Four. We ended up renting a condo type place that could sleep all of us, which was fun!! The next morning we made our famous breakfast of quiche, grits, and monkey bread before heading out for Walt Disney World. When we got there we met up with our good friends from Tampa, Rich and Lisa and their son Mason who was celebrating his second birthday!!

We all had a great time, Reid really enjoyed himself and actually Ryan did pretty well too! We did the obligatory rides like Pirates of the Carribean, the Haunted Mansion (Reid fell asleep in that one- it was the end of the day), the Mad Hatters Tea Party, It's a Small World, Winnie the Pooh, the Buzz Lightyear ride, the speed way, and the adults even managed to fit in Big Thunder Mountain Space Mountain. Not bad for having 4 children under the age of 3!!

The following day we stayed in Orlando and met Erik's Mom and Stepdad at Downtown Disney. It was a beautiful day and we had a nice time walking around. We ate lunch at a nice sandwich place. Reid had a great time with his Grandparents as usual. Susan (Erik's mom) got Reid eating potato chips with mustared on them, which was funny. After that we drove home. All in all we had a great time!! I am not sure if we will go again next year or wait until Ryan is older. We shall see:)

The following week was Reid's actual birthday. We had my Dad and Pam and the boys over and had a small birthday celebration, which was fun. Reid got a birthday month this year.

New things this month with Ryan are that he started to pull up. Watch out Reid- it's all over!!! Ryan started doing something funny this month. If you lie down on the floor, he will crawl over to you and head-butt you. It's really cute as long as you are conscious of him. He can really hurt you!!He also started to do his pincer grasp which means he can start feeding himself. Indeed his did feed himself. I tried cheerios, but he didn't like them(maybe the only baby in the history of the world). I gave him some puffs (which are little star shaped starchy things that dissolve quickly), he LOVED those- might have something to do with all the sugar:) Ryan also got to have yogurt this month, which he also loved. He is a bit of a picky eater, preferring fruits rather than veggies (not surprising I guess). So it is always nice for me to find something he will eat without a fight. I have been getting plain organic yogurt and mixing it with fruit, and he sucks it down.



The boys visited with Santa this month. Reid did great, Ryan- not so much. He did NOT like Santa. In the photo album there is a picture of the screaming. Poor kid.


Well the other exciting thing this month is we learned that Erik passed his CPA exam!!! There was much rejoicing as this has been a 4-5 year ordeal. First with Erik finishing up his master level classes at UNF, then with the CPA exam prep class, then the time it takes to take each test and wait for results. I am SOOOOO proud of him and to celebrate he got a new I-Touch, which is what he wanted more than anything in the whole world!!!

Nothing new with me really. Just enjoying my boys!!

That's all for now:)

October 2008

October 2008

Well October was a busy month in the Hirsch house!!

Ryan is 8 months old now and this month he started to do some new things.

Ryan started pulling up to his knees, which gives him a new vantage point. He is loving his Leap Frog Learning Table. He has also thrown the army crawl to the wayside and started crawling on his hands and knees! He realized he can keep up with his brother easier by crawling. Another new thing this month is that he can sit in the bathtub by himself!! We had up until this point just had him in his baby tub. Now that he can sit in the tub, we can bathe the boys at the same time which makes our life easier!!

Reid has continued to love school!! He looks forward to it every day he goes- that makes me happy:)

Some notable activities occurred this month. Ryan had his first boat outing with DeeDee and Poppee. Of course this happened while I was at work sadly, but they all had a great time from what I understand. Reid had a blast!!

We also had a fun trip to the zoo with Gramps, Bruce, and David. Reid always loves the zoo.

I spent this month working on Reid's halloween costume. I decided that he HAD to have an Imagination Movers costume. The problem is that no one makes them yet as the show is pretty new. So long story short, after ordering the "boiler suit" from England (I could NOT find coveralls for toddlers in the US), and playing with my computer, I managed to make a pretty good replica of a real mover suit. I am NOT at all crafty so this was quite an accomplishment for me:)

Ryan got to be Squirt from Finding Nemo. This was the same costume Reid used at his age and we LOVe it. We had a fun Halloween with Gramps and Pamps. Reid did great and said Trick or Treat and even thank you. He also enjoyed the candy this year- M&M's are his favorite!!

Erik retook what was hopefully his last CPA test. We waited for what seemed like years to find out that he didn't pass it the first time. We are very hopeful that this is the last test. Erik studied his tookus off this time. Now we just have to wait!!!

Reid is a Rock Star

We had gone to the Imagination Movers conert this day. Reid found my mother-in-law's cane (she had an injury) and he thought it made a good microphone!!

Reid started school!!!

For those of you who don't know, Reid started a mothers morning out program this year. It is Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:15 to 12:15. It is a great way for him to get used to the idea of school since we haven't done anything like this yet. Well he had his open house, which went very well until the end, where Reid had a very dramatic melt-down because he didn't want to leave the playground. During this meltdown, he was looking at me instead of in front of him and he ran into a wall. This brought more tears. We finally got him to calm down in the classroom for a snack, where at some point the sadness started up again and he choked on a goldfish cracker. It was quite sad.

I was somewhat anxious the first day we dropped him off. We had been talking this up for months. I had explained to him that Ryan and I would be leaving him and he seemed okay with that. They take the kids down a hallway to their classroom so the kids leave you. All the kids grab onto these animal rings that are attached to a rope. Reid barely looked back. They are just doing 2 hours the first two weeks to ease them into it, so it was short. I guess he had a great time, the note I got said "he did wonderful". Yay!! Unfortunately that didn't last. The next 3 times I dropped him off he grabbed onto me and one of the directors had to grab him and carry him to the classroom. This was after he talked about how he wanted to go to school. He got over it almost immediately once he was on his way to his classroom.

After thinking about it, I realized that we can't get there too early. There are 4 classes starting with 1 year-olds. They come and get each class and bring them to their rooms. Reid is in the oldest class and they have to wait the longest and witness all of the smaller children who cry. So once I started getting there closer to the time when they bring his class back we have had no problems!! (I also bribe him with a smoothie:)

August

August- noteworthy points:

-Ryan continued trying new foods, he tried sweet potatoes, peas, rice cereal, carrots, and squash. He was not convinced about this eating thing at all. He is quite proficient in drinking from his sippy cup though:)






-Ryan started scooting (sort of), he scoots pushes off with his back legs and the front part of his body slides along the ground.

-Ryan has discovered his voice. He is LOUD, LOUD, LOUD. He has also officially discovered his laugh which is a heavenly sound.

-His sleeping habits have improved to a certain extent, he is now mostly waking up 2 times per night, which is a VAST improvement over what we were seeing. Erik and I are starting to feel like humans again.

-Tropical Storm Fay visited us which provided an impromptu vacation for Erik. We got to spend the 21st and 22nd together as a family with NO agenda, which NEVER happens. It was nice.

-Erik and I had our 6th wedding anniversary. We went to Cheesecake Factory as usual.

-Reid is gearing up for school next month, we are doing a lot of playing with friends and still doing Gymboree.

-My brothers turned 7 and we had a nice birthday party with them.

Love and Logic

Reid is at that funny age of almost 3 where I have been at a little bit of a loss with how to discipline him. For the most part he is a really, really great kid- I believe exceptionally great. He is very cautious, not agressive, and kind.

Of course there are those moments where he is not easy to discipline. At this age, you wonder what can be expected of them, since he is somewhere between a baby and a child. We decided we are not going to spank our children, so that leaves one wondering what to do? This philosophy was recommended on a message board, and I really liked what they had to say so I bought a couple of the books.

It is called Love and Logic. The basic idea is that the consequences of their actions should teach children. Not yelling, not spanking, not lecturing. The parent is to be empathetic and calm and behave as though it doesn't cause any stress at all do deal with your child. The book has lots of clever and creative consequences for undesirable behaviors, and ways to curb fights. I highly recommend it.

So I just thought I would post an update on how my little experiment with what this book is teaching is going.

First we have been working on trying to offer lots of choices to Reid. We had been doing that a bit anyway, but we are trying to up it.

Second, we have been trying to use our key word that means that basically he is in trouble, we are using "Uh oh".

Third, I really instituted a better time-out policy. In the book if they are doing something you don't like you say "uh oh, looks like bedroom time". It says in the book to take them to their room and ask if they want the door open or closed. Reid would say open, then I would tell him he could come out when he wanted to be nice. Well he quickly caught on to this and would just go right in for a minute yell that he was "gonna to behave" and come back out. I had to up the anty a bit. After he hit his brother because he was mad at me, I closed the door. I followed the books instructions and held the door closed- he did NOT like this at all. I made him stay in for about 5 minutes until he calmed down and then let him come out and told him I loved him. The hardest part about this is my next reaction is to discuss why he is in time-out. These guys say don't do that- let the consequense be the lesson. You are just supposed to say something like "that was sad" and tell them you love them and let it be the end of it.

We had to do that twice and now the Uh oh has become a quick fix with behavior problems.

We have been working on Reid being able to walk at Publix and Target, he understandably gets really excited about this and has a hard time controlling his urge to run, pick things off the shelves, open the refrigerater doors, and wander away. Even though Ryan can sit in the cart now, I have been still keeping him in the sling to keep the front seat open. The last time we went to Publix, I had to put Reid in the cart for something- I forget what, this did not make him happy, he yelled when he was in the cart and cried. I just continued to use empathy like the book says and said I know it's sad, I'm sorry, etc. I gave him one chance to try to get back out of the cart, and about 2 seconds later he was running, so he went back in the cart for the rest of the shopping trip. When we were at Target, he would wander off, and I would hide a little bit so I could see him but he couldn't see me, but unfortunately that didn't really panic him, he just sat there and said "mommy, mommy",I probably should have made myself lost for longer. I am pretty sure he ended up in the cart for that trip too.

Anyway, we went to Publix on Monday and before we got out of the car, I asked Reid what the rules were, he remembered them, so I told him he could walk as long as he followed the rules. He was for the most part PERFECT!! HE stayed right by me, didn't pick anything up, didn't run down the aisles. If he started to have a memory loss all I had to say was "uh oh", and he would be right back by my side saying "I'm gonna behave" in an instant- it was AMAZING!! I did put him in the cart because he opened the freezer doors, but only made him stay in for a minute because I felt like he got it.

We had to have a little talk at Gymboree yesterday too, and after removing him from Gymboree and having a quick talk, he was great the rest of the class and participated in most of the activities (he never wants to participate).

Today I had a really sad one. We were eating lunch and still hadn't showered (Reid showers with me most days- he enjoys playing in my shower and it keeps him out of trouble). He was dawdling eating his peas so I asked him if he wanted to finish his peas and come take a shower or not take a shower- he wanted to take a shower. I told him he had 5 minutes to finish his peas. I even gave him updates on the time, and he just still messed around, so at the end of 5 minutes, I said guess you aren't getting to shower. (What I forgot was to use my empathy word before I said that- you are supposed to say something like "Bummer, looks like no shower for you"-I am still working on that) Anyway, I got in the shower without him- it was SOOOO sad. He sat at the door and cried and cried. At one point he left for a minute then came back and continued the crying, at another point he left and came back with a mouth full of peas, saying he wanted to get in the shower:( It was the saddest thing ever. The old me would have let him come in the shower at that point but the new me just had to say I'm glad you did the right thing buddy, but shower time is over. You can shower tomorrow. It was heart wrenching, but I think next time he won't mess around eating.

What I have learned so far is that all you truly want is for your kids to be happy. Unfortunately in the short-term you kinda have to make them mad. They will be happier in the long run. My first instinct is always to avoid tears or fights, but that is not what is best for him in the long run. This book has really helped me with learning how to discipline in a strict way while being very loving and eliminating yelling and lecturing (I am still working on the lecturing thing). I am finding that it is VERY hard (for me to see him upset about the consequences), but it has been so rewarding to see him get it.

Again I know most of this is common sense, but it has been nice to have a game plan to work with.

Thanks for listening to my rambling:)

Reid's Stats

November 18th, 2005

-8lb 6oz

-20.5 inches long

November, 22 2005


-7lb 14 oz

-21 inches

-35 cm head







December 6, 2005 (2 weeks)

-9lb 2 oz

-21.5 inches

-37.5 cm head












January 19, 2006 (2 months)

-12lb 11oz (75th %ile)

-23.25 inches long (60th %ile)

-40.25 cm head (50th %ile)












March 20, 2006 (4 months)

-16lb (70th %ile)

-25.5 inches long (60th %ile)

-43 cm head (70th %ile)







May 18th, 2006 (6 month)

-18lb 12 oz (70th %ile)

-26.75 inches long (50th %ile)

-44.75 cm head (75th %ile)







August 21, 2006 (9 month)

-20lb 4oz

-28.25 inches long

-46.5 cm head








November 20th, 2006 (1 year)

-21lb 4oz (25th %ile)

-20.5 inches (75th%)

-40.5 cm head (80th %ile)












February 12, 2007 (15 months)

-23lb 6oz (40th%ile)

-31 inches long (50th %ile)

-48 cm head (75th %ile)












18 months??



November, 15th, 2008 (2 years)

-27lbs (40th %ile)

-34 inches long (40th %ile)

-50 cm head (80th %ile)












November 24th

31.6lbs (50th %ile)

37.5 inches long (50th %ile)

51 cm head (80th %ile)

Ryan's Stats

January 26th, 2008



-8lb 4oz, 20

-20 and 1/4 inches long






January 30, 2008
(4 days)


-7lb 12oz



-20 1/4 inches long



-35 1/4 head










February 7th, 2008
(2 weeks)


-8lb 9oz



-20.5 inches long



-37 cm head







March 28th, 2008
(2 months)


-13lb 10oz (90th %ile)



-23 inches long(50th %ile)



-40 cm head (50th%ile)







June 23, 2008
(4 months)




-18lb 5 oz (85th %ile)



-26 inches long (70th %ile)



-44 cm head (75th %ile)







August 4th
(6 months)


-19lb 11oz (80th %ile)



-26.5 inches long (50th %ile)



-44.5 cm head (60-70th %ile)







September 23rd
(7months)

-20lb 14 oz









November 4, 2008 (9 months)

21lb 8oz (60th%ile)

28 3/4 inches long (60th %ile)

Head- 461/2 cm (80th %ile)

February 3rd (1 year)

23lb 1oz (50th %ile)

30 inches (60th %ile)

Head- 47 cm (60th %ile)

May 5th (15 months)

23lb 6 oz (50th%ile)

30.5 inches (50th %ile)

48 cm head (70th %ile)

Reid-isms

This is a little dedication to my wonderful boy. Part of the joy of parenting is hearing what will come out of these kids mouths. I thought I would try to compile some of the cute things I hear him say, so I don't forget them. You have to imagine this high pitched voice with a little lilt at the end of every sentence. He is just starting to lose that.

*Pool=Cool

*When he wants Erik to throw something up high to hit the

ceiling he says "Daddy make real sounds"

*He says stuff is "pretty cool" or "pretty cute"

*Today when Ryan was crying in his room he said, "Ryan

don't want to sleep, he's just chilling out"

*The other day I looked over and Reid was sitting on Ryan, I

made some exclamation and he said " I'm just sitting on

Ryan" (which sounds more like Ryn).

*Shivers = Sugars

*Whenever he hits his golf ball, he says "I hit it 14 yards"

*He went through a phase where he would point out

something we purchased and say "Mommy got this at Old

Mavy(Old Navy), Mommy got this on sale"

*When he is hungry now he says "I want somfing else"

*When he is drumming, or pretending to play the guitar using his hockey stick, he will do this

dramatic playing and then say "I rocked out on dage (stage)".

I will continue to add to this one;)

*He doesn't say this anymore, but when he was first learning to talk he called all songs CD's. There was one song on the chicken little DVD that was sort of mournful and he did not like it, so he would say "no no CD"

*More recently he has started using the word "actually". For example, tonight we asked him if he could pedal his bike and he started to then he said "actually, I'm not doing that".

*Now he started saying everything (houses, cars, shirts, etc.) "costs forty dollars"

*We both think it's really cute when he says "I'll be right back, Mommy", or "Bye Bye Daddy". Anytime they use your name like that it's adorable.

*Going to = Gonna to, ex. I'm gonna to behave.

Ryan's first food

June/July 2008

June was uneventful with a few notable exceptions. Erik's mother- Susan and step-father- Alex came to visit us, and not only did they come to visit us, they fixed our sprinklers and helped entertain our children!!! It was wonderful:) Reid was in heaven. Grandma and Grandpa let him get dirty, got him bubbles, gave him an ice cream cone, and most importantly gave him an audience for his antics. We had a very nice visit with them. They went for an adventure after leaving us and even came back by to finish the sprinklers (it had rained too much before). Couldn't ask for more than that!!! Ryan also had a great time with his Grandparents.

That same weekend we also got a visit from my friend Holly and her girlfriend Jaime, it was short but sweet and it was nice to see them.

Ryan had his 4 month appointment (almost at 5 months) and he weighed 18lb 5 oz which was 85th %ile, was 26 inches long which was 70th %ile, and his head was 44cm which was 75th percentile. He rolled over from his back to his front for the first time this month. He had been rolling from his front to his back since last month, but then developed amnesia about how to do that. Ryan also giggled for the first time at the end of the month- there is not a more joyous sound:)

July was a bit crazy for us. In the beginning of the month we drove up to Newnan for the 4th of July. We left on Wednesday afternoon and got there late Wednesday morning. The boys did great on the drive. Reid loved getting to see all of the road work. He loves to look at all the construction equipment. We had a wonderful visit. My Grandmother was there too and she is always wonderful to be around. We ate ALL day long on the 4th.























Then on Saturday my uncle Will, Mary Beth, Cole, and Casey came over. Reid was yet again in heaven. Casey was fantastic with him and let him tag along with her all day. He was such a happy guy. Cole and Erik played Rock Band all day. Erik left with my Mom and Mark on Sunday and the boys and I stayed with Carrie and my Grandma until Thursday. I took Reid to see his first movie which was Wall-E since I had baby sitters for Ryan. I wasn't exactly sure how Reid would react, but I did not expect what happened at all. We got into the theater right at the end of the previews. Reid sat in his own seat right next to me. When the movie started he was completely still. So still that I asked him if he was okay a couple of times. I was slightly worried about him so I asked him if he wanted to sit on my lap, he said yes. Well not 5 minutes later, he PASSED OUT asleep on me. I can't tell you the last time that happened. He slept for maybe 20-3o minutes then woke up refreshed and rejuvenated. I think his little brain got so overloaded that it had to shut down. It kind of concerned me a bit. Anyway, he was definitely very well behaved and we had a fun mommy-son outing. On Thursday, Carrie and I drove back to Jax with Reid, Ryan, and Claire. That could have all gone terribly wrong, but was pretty much fine. There were a few tricky moments, but nothing horrible.



Carrie stayed with us the following week. We had a good time. Unfortunately for her, I was frazzled a lot of the time, and we stayed very busy, but I really enjoyed having them here. Rollin even stayed for a couple of days, which was fun.



Other than that Erik has hopefully completed the CPA exam. We are awaiting his results from his final test. That will be so nice to have done!! He is full-swing into a major software change at his company, which should keep him busy at work for the next few months.



Ryan is doing great, he turned 6 months on Saturday. We had a nice period of sleeping and now he is fighting his sleep. I am not sure what to do about it. It might just be time for him to have more of a consistent routine. He is mobile and rolls from front to back and back to front. He also rolls all over the living room!! We are to that point where we have to really be careful about what we leave on the floor- actually what Reid leaves on the floor. He is sitting up quite well but still falls over occasionally. He is much more interested in what is going on around him. He loves playing with toys and even manages to put the shapes into the shape sorter (with the lid off). He loves Reid and seems to be quite amused by him. He is a really sweet guy and HUGE. The most recent weight was around 19lbs. His 6 month appointment is next week, so we will see just how huge!






Reid is also doing very well. He amazes us everyday with his language development. It turns out that he also has a pretty good golf swing for a 2 year-old:) We have been quite impressed by him. We are still doing Gymboree once a week. Reid is still very much enjoying it. Potty is still going quite well. He has lost the being dry overnight, but that had to be a fluke anyway. Sometimes he still does wake up dry. He so far has always stayed dry for naps though. We have finally gotten rid of Reid's last evidence of baby-hood. Through a lot of bribery, the paci is gone!!!

Reid will be starting a mothers morning out program in the fall. It will be Tuesday and Thursday from 9-12. I think this will be a good introduction to school for him without being too overwhelming, his best friend Kayla will be in his class too, so I am hoping that helps as well. I am hoping that this will be an opportunity to get Ryan in Gymboree too since Reid will be occupied. Reid is excited about starting school and knows it starts in September. It will be interesting to see how he does with it. I have never left him in a situation like that. He usually handles things much better than I think he will so hopefully this will hold true for this situation as well.


I am doing fine. The night before Erik left when we were in Newnan, I had some kind of anxiety attack. After experiencing this, it confirmed for me that I was experiencing that and NOT pre-eclampsia when I was in the hospital again after I had Ryan. After having these off and on for about 3 weeks, I feel normal again. Hopefully I have some tools to cope with them should they happen again (and if not, I have some drugs). I have definitely learned that I really do need to be making exercise a priority. I am hoping Erik and I will start a routine of going on walks with the kids after dinner. It is nice for us to not only get outside and get some exercise, but also to catch up with each other. I also think it is good for the kids to see us making it a priority to be outside and exercising. Besides my mental issues, I just got a nice raise at work- all the nurses did- so that was nice. I am still working weekends. It still works for us. I am still hoping that in the not too distant future, that we will find a way to get more quality family time in.


I guess that is basically it for now. The Hirsch's are signing off:)

Update on our life

Well things are going well here at the Hirsch household. While things are not as easy as they once were, they have settled into a rhythm. Ryan is super cute and HUGE these days. I am not sure how much he weighs right now, but at his 3 month vaccine appointment he weighed 16lb 4oz, which is a month ahead of Reid at the same age:) He has gotten to be such a cutie. We have started to see some laughing and lots of happiness. He is rolling over from his front to his back now, which means it is hard to get him to do tummy time:) Almost the second he is on his tummy he rolls back over. He can almost roll from his back to his front, and gets all the way on his side, but hasn't completed the turn yet. We switched him to size 3 diapers about 2 weeks ago, as the size 2's were no longer containing his messes. We have also started some 6-9 month clothes, mostly the onsies since they fit better with the bulkier cloth diapers.

We are going through some growing pains with the sleeping situation. We started letting him sleep in his crib during the day. He never gets a good solid nap in though. He will maybe be in his crib 2-3 hours but wakes up every 15-45 minutes. Then we go in there and give him the pacifier. I know he is teething (drool, fussiness, sleeplessness). At night he went from sleeping 7 hours at a time back to nursing every 3 hours. I am hoping he will snap out of it soon because I really miss my sleep. We are starting him out in the co-sleeper next to our bed, then I just let him sleep with me the rest of the night. Especially if he is nursing that often, I am too tired to have to get him out everytime. Plus I LOVE snuggling with him at night. It is very sweet.

Reid is also doing very well. He is officially potty trained. And has even stayed dry EVERY night and at nap time. It is quite miraculous. I still can't believe it. I just started yesterday letting him sleep for his naps in underwear instead of a pull-up.

We got the game Rock Band for X-Box and we played it with Reid the other night. We let Reid do drums and we just didn't hook them up. I sang and Erik played guitar. It was really fun. He seems to be developing some rhythm. Still asks everyday to put on the U2 video so he can drum.

Reid talks NON-STOP. He is getting quite good at putting sentences together properly. It is mosly cute, but can definitely get trying. He has this little habit of asking for things over and over and over and over again. It makes Erik and I INSANE. We still haven't seen too many 2 year-old tantrums. I have not really had to do time-out or anything. I can pretty much threaten him with going to bed and he will stop the behavior.

Reid loves playing with any kind of ball. He also enjoys watching sports on TV with Erik. He does enjoy cooking with me too, so at least I get that:)

I am doing well. We have been having discussions about me cutting back on my hours so we can have more family time. I have really not worked much since I got back from maternity leave, since I had a scheduled weekend off, then called out the weekend little Claire was born, then they didn't need me last Sunday. We have been doing fine, even with my fewer hours. I think we are still going to wait until we know more about Erik's future income to take the plunge though. Every time I get to be home on a weekend, it just makes us wish we had more time like that to just BE as a family.

Erik is also doing well. He just found out that he passed his 3rd part of his CPA. So now he only has 1 more to go!!! We will be so relieved when he is done:) Work is going well. Erik's goal is to keep coming up with creative ways to save his company money, in hopes that it will come back to him eventually.

Our exciting news is that my sister became a Mommy on May 16th. We all drove up there and I was able to be present for the birth. Carrie did fantastically!! She had no medications at all and had a beautiful delivery. Claire was born at 12:16 am and was 7lb 13oz. Reid and Ryan love her already!! Our trip to Newnan, GA was fine. As I mentioned above, Ryan decided he didn't need to sleep anymore on the trip so I was EXHAUSTED, but Reid did great, and wanted to go back to Aunt Carrie's house as soon as we got home. I guess he doesn't mind car rides. It was amazing to witness the birth of my little niece and the strength in my little sister. We were so glad that we could make it.

This picture is of Ryan and Reid with their Uncle Rol.

Our Rock Star!!!

Reid just recently became interested in his drum set that he has had for a year and a half!!

Erik borrowed a U2 video from a co-worker. Reid had watched it and at some point decided that he was going to pull his drum set out and drum to the video. It is the cutest thing ever. He gets all serious when he is drumming. After a couple of days Reid decided he would sing too. We have kind of a goose-neck light for our grill and he adopted that as his microphone until I got him an echo one.

We have gotten a huge kick out of this. Last week I got out my guitars and we had family music night:) Erik CANNOT wait until we get Rock Band for the XBox. We just had to buy a new U2 video to replace the one we are borrowing and I threw in an Indigo Girls one too (he needs to be well rounded:)

So now we hear Reid going around singing "pop music, talk about pop music" which is kind of a dance mix song on the video. It's really cute!!

Adventures in Cloth Diapering

I just wanted to share with you guys that I have been using cloth diapers when I am home and I have found it to be a pretty easy process, and saves money. It had really hit home with me having two kids in diapers both how much they cost and how much of my trash was diapers. My thrifty side and my green side both feel really guilty about that. I had tried briefly with Reid to use them, but never got into a routine. Here is what I am doing with Ryan though.

I got all of my diapers from a web-site called http://www.nickisdiapers.com/

I have 4 Fuzzi Bunz that I bought when Reid was little. I also have 1 called a Bum Genius that I recently bought. These kind are called pocket diapers. They have a pocket in the back that you put a microfiber insert into and then go on basically like a disposable diaper. Then I have 12 old-school diapers (the ones are used for burp cloths now, but most of us were diapered in with safety pins when we were kids:) And I have 2 diaper covers. One is called a Thirsties diaper cover, and the other Bummi's Super Brite (I like the thirsties one better). You lay the cover down and fold the old-school diaper in thirds and put it in the cover, then put it on like a disposable basically. I haven't decided which ones I like the best, they are all pretty easy to use. They have all contained leaks pretty well also.

Basically I am washing them every other day. You do a cold rinse cycle, then a hot water full cycle. I also have a "wet bag" that the diapers go into when they are dirty. When it is time to wash them, I dump all the diapers out into the washer and put the bag in too. Since Ryan is breast fed, his poop dissolves in the wash. When he starts eating food, I have some liners that you put in the diapers that are flushable. Then when he poops I take the diaper off, and flush the liner and the poop in the toilet.

Oh I am also using cloth wipes. I made some wipes solution which is 1/4 cup baby wash, 1/4 cup of baby oil, and 1 cup of water. Then I put it in a spray bottle and spray it on either a wash cloth or some flannel reusable wipes that I bought. I find it is easier to use disposable wipes with disposable diapers and reusable wipes with reusable diapers. Then the reusable wipes go into my wet bag too.

I have found this to be a really intriguing process. I know it seems really out there, gross, and granola, but it really doesn't feel that way at all. When using cloth there is a somewhat large initial investment, but then depending on what kind you buy, you really don't have much more to buy- hence saving you lots of money in the long run. It has felt pretty rewarding to me to only throw away half the diapers I usually do:)

Potty, Potty, Pot-ty!!!

So yet again, Reid has astounded us with his ability to transition easily.

We have been talking to Reid about the potty since he was about 18 months. We got the potty at that time and it sings and makes noises when you flush it. He also has a potty video and some potty books. However, he has never shown any inkling that he is actually ready to potty train. On a whim last monday, I decided to give the potty ago. I did not at all figure Reid was ready to be potty trained, but as so many kids his age that we knew had all at least gone pee in the potty, I thought I would take the opportunity of an agenda free day to try it. So I set Reid's potty up in front of the TV with a potty video, and gave him some Juicy Juice (he never gets to drink that). I started thinking that he had to go, but was holding it at some point. He asked for a diaper a couple of times, but I was able to distract him. At some point he was on the potty and started to pee- well this must have startled him because he stopped. He got up and ran around a little bit but then told me his belly hurt, I explained that it hurt because he needed to put his pee pee in the potty, and so he did!! I was completely shocked. He gets M&M's (which we call a special treat) when he goes to the potty, so he got those, which excited him, then he got to take the pee pee to the toilet to dump it and flush it. That same night, we just let him run around naked. He actually at one point went a little tiny bit on the floor, but then stopped and went over to the potty and finished. I was SHOCKED!! I was even more shocked when the next day he pooped in the potty:) He is a natural!!!

So now a week later what I have found is that he does great when he is naked. He pees and poops in the potty with out incident. Well, to be fair there were two accidents: 1 where he peed right by the bathtub when he was about to get in, and one where we were lying in my bed (I trusted him by this point) and then he said "pee pee hot", so I got to clean all of our sheets:)

The second we put him back in a diaper he just pees and poops like he always has. I bought him some big boy underwear, but that doesn't seem to be making too big of an impression on him. I bribed him to put them on and he said they were too tight. So I am still figuring that out.

Anyway, that is the potty story as riveting as it is:) I am super curious to see what happens when we take the next step of actually making him wear underwear. I am going to try to find some that aren't so tight.

Stay tuned for more exciting adventures with a two year-old!!!

Parenting Two

Wow, has this been quite the roller coaster!!! I will just say this, Having two kids is HARD WORK!!!

I am just now (that Ryan is 3 months) able to occasionally get them both sleeping at the same time. This affords me some me-time, which is severely lacking in my life.

Luckily Reid is a very easy going child and has not one time shown any hint of jealousy or anger towards Ryan. He is just now to the point where he seems to enjoy him and will give him kisses, and talk to him. He also loves jumping in there and giving Ryan his paci when he loses it.

There are those times however when I have two screaming children- those are the times when I just laugh and be present. There is just not much one can do at that point but ride it out:)

This is such a rewarding time in my life that I have been really focusing on being present and just being with them. It has made a remarkable change in me. I have realized that the cleaning will get done at some point, whether or not I stress out about it. My kids are only in my life for a short time though and I don't want to miss a smile because I am cleaning or on the computer.

Anyway, just some random thoughts for the day:)