Evan's 6 month pictures...I just found this drafted blog post

haha this is 3 years too late

 

Evan is growing growing.

Madeline 9 months...very late

Poor Madeline...she will never have updates about herself. I never blog anymore. So this post is over a month late. I'll still compare her growth and development with the boys though. So...

 

Madeline's weight 19 lbs 9 oz - 70th percentile

height  27 in - 50th percentile

The doctor didn't write down her head size but it is becoming more normal on her growth curve. It's just big.

 

Luc's weight at 9 mos. 20 lb 2 oz - 50th percentile 

height 29 in - 75th percentile

head - 46 1/2 cm 75-90th percentile

 

Evan's weight at 9 mos 20 lb 11 oz - 55th percentile

height 28 1/2 in - 50th percentile

head 47 1/2 cm 95th percentile

 

Evan was my chunkiest baby, Luc has always been my longest, and Madeline has been my little one...though she is quite chunky too.

 

 

Fast forward to 10 months...Madeline is a very fast crawler. She LOVES sneaking away to play in the toilet or garbage can. When she is heading in a direction that she knows she shouldn't (like the toilet), I say "no" then she laughs and takes off really fast to get away from me. She stands for several seconds without holding on. She is beginning to really show a temper. She is learning that what mama and daddy eat is pretty good. She loves drinking from a straw. She thinks walking through rain is really funny. She loves her brothers so much. She says "da-da" and is beginning to say "mama". I'm not sure she is intentionally saying "mama" yet. She says it when she upset.



6 months old!

This baby girl is 6 months old already....and she doesn't like sitting in the grass. haha

 

Madeline began sleeping through the night a couple of weeks ago...then we traveled to Alabama. She's back to waking up every 2-3 hours now. My body was tricked by having a week of sleep then back to no sleep. I have been so so tired lately.

 

She has learned to sit up and get up on her hands and knees. She hasn't figured out crawling though. She just rocks back and forth then flops down. She can get where she wants to go by rolling though. She's a little roly poly.

 

Madeline was introduced to some baby food last week. We started rice cereal. She has tasted carrots and sweet potatoes too. She isn't crazy about any of them but she will tolerate sweet potatoes. Her favorite thing to do during mealtime is mash her lips together so I can't get the spoon in...then if I manage to trick a bit in there she blows it at me. Evan did the same thing when I tried to feed him so I know she'll eventually eat.

 

My favorite things to remember at this age are:

-how she gets so excited when she first sees her brothers in the morning

-she plays (or pulls) my hair when she's nursing

-she gets so excited to see me when I get her up from bed or when I come home from work

-her little giggle is too cute

-she's still so chubby

Her stats:
17 lb, 10 oz (75th percentile)
26 in (50th percentile)
head circumference has jumped to 45 cm (97th percentile) more on this below

Luc at 6 months:
17 lb 4 oz (50th percentile)
27 in ( 75th percentile)
HC 46 cm (75th)

Evan at 7 months:
18 lb 12 oz (50th percentile)
27 in (50th percentile)

First of all, I suppose the percentiles are so different because there are different charts for boys versus girls. Anyway, Luc was born with a big head and has always had a big one. Evan was born with an average head but then it got big. Madeline was born with an average head and evidentally it has gotten big so quickly that it is a concern....that and her soft spot protrudes. So our dr sent us to have a brain ultrasound. They just wanted to be certain that there is nothing blocking the ventricles in her brain which could cause her soft spot to stick out and her skull to grow so quickly. The ultrasound was normal. We do have to go back in to have her head remeasured though. Baby drama!
 

 



Madeline 5 months already

 

I really can't believe Madeline is 5 months old. I am already getting really sad about this being the last baby and it is going by WAY too fast.

 

Madeline has become such a happy, sweet baby. She has pretty much outgrown the reflux. She still has occasional flare ups but not too bad. Her tummy is tolerating a little more dairy which is good for me because I have really been missing my cheese. I can't wait for a huge glass of cold milk.

 

Madeline has found her feet and loves to chew or suck on her toe. She still loves her brothers...the Evan specifically still adores her. She watches everything they do. She is getting more and more mobile. She rolls all over the place and scoots backwards. It will be no time before she is crawling. I best get down and find all the tiny Lego pieces.

 

This girl is still not sleeping. She goes to bed around 7:30. She starts off in her bed but usually ends up in my arms at some point. I'm fine with her sleeping with me but I'm not okay with waking up every 2-3 hours. Her naps are getting more regular. She takes a decent morning nap if we are home then two shorter naps later in the day.

 

I think Madeline is going to be my clingiest baby. She cries more than the boys did when someone else holds her especially someone she doesn't know well. Or maybe I just don't remember the boys wanting me at this age.

Madeline at 4 months

 

Here is Miss Madeline at 4 months. The girl likes to eat. She still nurses every 2-3 hours during the day and 3-4 during the night. We are not on a schedule yet and her sleeping habits are terrible. She sleeps with me...in the crook of my arm...right up against me. I have loved sleeping with all my babies but it's about time to stop. I wake up sore in the mornings from the way I sleep. Also, I need to be able to get things done rather than just hold Miss Priss all the time.

 

Madeline has become a pretty happy baby. Her reflx is a million times better. She still has trouble after she eats sometimes but she is completely off medication now. I think her tummy is beginning to tolerate dairy somewhat too. I have been having creamer in my coffee and some cheese in food occassionally. She has the cutest little laugh. She has started cooing which for her is actually a high pitched squeal. I think I'll have another loud mouth here. She has rolled over from her front to back only a couple of times. I'm thinking she'll be rolling soon though. She has been enjoying tummy time a whole lot more lately.

 

So here are her stats...and comarisons with the boys at 4 months...

weight: 15lb 13 oz (90th percentile)

height: 24 in (25th percentile)

head: 43 cm (95th percentile)

 

Luc:

16 lb 2 oz, 26.5 in

 

Evan:

17lb, 25.5 in

 

I was looking back at the boys baby books. Madeline is by far my worst sleeper. Luc was definitely my best...and still is. He was sleeping 8-10 hours straight at 6 weeks. He also took really good naps early on. I wonder if the more structured schedule that I was able to keep Luc on has to do with that or just inborn.

2 weeks late...

Here she was at one month...

Madeline has been diagnosed with pretty severe reflux or GERD...same thing Evan had. We have been giving her Zantac for a few weeks now. It helps for a few hours. I guess it wears off after a while. She screams about 80-90% of her waking hours. On a normal day, that is anywhere from 4-8 hours of crying/screaming. Everyone says "poor tired mama". I am exhausted but really I hate so much to see her in pain. We started her on Prevacid this week. It is VERY expensive but hopefully it will bring her relief. On a good note, she is gaining weight. She weighed 10 lbs 14 oz at the doctor's office on Friday. That's 3 lb 14 oz more than her birth weight. She is just now beginning to smile a little. Here is a half smile half fuss...at 6 weeks old...

Evan's month late 18 month pictures

When Luc was 18 months old, it was the beginning of football season. We decided it would be a great idea to make his 18 month portraits football themed. The pictures turned out so cute. I wanted to do it for Evan too. I keep forgetting to take him in to get the portraits done so I took some at home today. They aren't professional but at least I got some done. And these are actually a month late...he is 19 months old now.

Here was Luc's 

Evan 18 months

I can't remember if I did an 18 month post or not. Anyway, here were his stats at his 18 month check-up:

Weight: 25 lb 2 oz; 35th percentile

Height: 33 in; 55th percentile

Head circumference: 49 3/4 cm; 90th percentile

Here were Luc's:

Weight: 25 lb 7 oz; 45th percentile

Height: 34 in; 90th percentile

Head circumference: 50 1/2 cm; 97th percentile

Evan is a handful at 18 months. He is very active. He tried to keep up with everything Luc says and does. He's pretty quick. He always runs away from us at the park. He climbs on everything. He hasn't climbed/fallen out of his bed yet though. His vocabulary is pretty large. He uses a variety of different words and is saying 4-5 word sentences. My favorite thing about this age is how he puts his sentences together. He has lots of words but doesn't know how to arrange them in a sentence. It's so cute.

 Here are some things he says at 19 months:

-"Mama, hold you me peez"("Mama, hold me please")

-"Daddy no go pay wif Emi" ("daddy is not going to play with Emi")

-"Papa John eat gum. Papa John no eat gum." (My dad had gum and told Evan that he couldn't have any. Evan talks about it all the time)

-"Daddy/Luc/Mama pooed" (when actually he did)

-"Daddy no take you go night night" ("I don't want daddy to take me to go night night")

-"No go night night"

-"Come Mama. Scary monsters dere. Wight on." (He says this almost every night when it gets dark and he wants to go in his room. "Come on Mama. Scary monsters are in there. Lights on.")

-"Bawee hot. It burn you" ("Very hot. It will burn me.")

Evan 16 months old

This is a super silly baby. He loves when people are around and always tries to make everyone laugh. I am happy to say that he is a much happier toddler than he was a little baby. His is super active and keeps us on the edge of our seats. He is a big climber. He is always on our kitchen table or on a bed or trying to climb onto a counter. He imitates everything that Luc does and says. He loves Luc so much and misses him so much when Luc is at preschool. I think he is right on target with his language. He says lots of different words and is putting 2-3 words together. It is very difficult to understand him without knowing the context though.

My boys at 15 months old

We had Evan's 15 month check-up this morning. He is doing great. I asked about his reflux...which is STILL really bad sometimes. He still spits up a lot, cries after he drinks a cup of milk (which he always downs in no time), and is really really gassy. Sometimes he has trouble laying down to sleep especially if it is within a couple of hours from the time he has eaten or had a cup of milk. Dr Mani wants us to try soy milk and stay away from dairy for a little while to see if that helps. 

Here are pictures of both boys at 15 months and their stats. I think it is amazing how different they look.

Luc:

Height: 33 1/2 in - 95th percentile

Weight: 23 lb 7 oz - 48th percetile (keep this in mind)

Head Circumference: 49 1/2 cm - 97th percentile

Luc had 7 teeth

Evan:

Height: 32 in - 75th percentile

Weight: 23 lb 8 oz - 40th percentile

Head Circumference: 49 cm - 91st percentile

Evan has 5 teeth 

Evan is one once heavier than Luc was at this age. Evan's percentile is lower that Luc's was though. Either the growth charts have changed or someone figured it wrong.

Evan at 13 months

I love this boy. Yes, he does wear me out completely but I love him. He is full of energy, very curious, and super silly. He loves to do whatever Luc is doing. He loves to do things to make us laugh. He gives us tons of hugs and kisses randomly throughout the day. He loves his bed when he is tired. Unfortunately, he likes to wake up early too (6:30-7).

Right now Evan loves:
-walking backwards
-jumping (though his feet don't come off the floor)
-dancing
-screaming (very high pitched shrill squeal)
-kicking balls around the house
-eating (this child eats more than I do)
-playing in the water
-doing anything outside
-eating popsicle or even just ice
-reading books

Evan tries to imitate almost any single word we say. He only has a few consonants so it is sometimes really hard to understand what he wants. On a regular basis he uses the words:
"bup" = cup, jump, up, help, rock
"muh" = more, milk
"dut" = dirt (funny boy...this was one of his first words), shirt, outside, Luc
"boop" = book
"wa-wa" = water
"wuh" = waffle
"seez" = cheese
"nat" = snack
"bubu" = berries, baby, bubbles
"meh-meh" = melon
"dit" = sit, kick
"es" = yes
"buh" - blow
"ba" = ball

I probably only understand 50% or maybe even less of what Evan tells me. He uses the word "bup" for a lot of his words. If I don't understand Evan, he will try to show me what he is trying to say. He has taken me to the refrigerator and showed me milk. One day, he kept telling me "dut" over and over. I had no idea what he wanted. He went to his room and brought me a t-shirt out of his dresser. I am really amazed at how much Evan understands. He follows directions very well. He will throw trash away, find his cup, get his shoes, and other short directions like this. Today I was talking with a lady at the playground. She was telling me that my boys could play with the toy trucks that were in her stroller. I thought Evan was minding his own business playing but he immediately walked right over there, dug around in the bottom of this ladies stroller and found the trucks.

Evan - 8 months

Evan is 8 months old. Wow time flies! Last night, Brian and I realized that one year ago yesterday we were rushing to the emergency room for the first of many pregnancy scares. What a long scary few months it was! I am so so so happy that God had plans for Evan that was completely against what the doctors were telling us. If only I had known then...

Evan is obviously a growing, healthy baby. I don't know how much he weighs but he is wearing 12-18 month clothes. He now had 2 teeth. He is finally crawling on his hands and knees rather than dragging his legs behind him. He pulls up to stand. He is starting to push things around but mostly by walking on his knees. He will finally eat most anything and he will drink from a sippy cup.

Our biggest challenge with Evan is that he is still a terrible sleeper. He goes to sleep on his own very easily. In fact, I noticed this morning in church that it is actually very difficult to get him to sleep by rocking him. Our problem is that he doesn't stay asleep. He usually wakes up at least twice a night. Sometimes he will go right back to sleep but other times he will cry for up to an hour. I have stopped nursing him when he wakes up which makes him pretty angry.

How does this work when your kids share a room? We have a palate on our bedroom floor for the nights Evan wakes Luc up...which is most nights. It works though.

So here is this super handsome sweet baby boy...

 Gotta love those eyes!

All About Evan

Evan is 7 months now. He saw the doctor just last week for his 6 month check up even though he was also 7 months. He has dropped down to the 50th percentile for both weight and height. He is doing great. She told me that I should really be more consistent working with him eating baby food especially seeing that I am going back to work a few hours a week next month.

He is crawling all over the house. He does an army crawl. He pulls himself with his arms. It doesn't slow him down though. He's quick. If I go in another room, he will follow me in there. He is also finally eating baby food better. Ashley worked with him a couple of times while we were staying at her parents house. He eats pretty good now. He will also drink from a sippy cup. He cut his first tooth...the day we moved. He LOVES taking a bath. I will get a video as soon as I can. It is hilarious. He goes nuts in there.

 Such a big boy.

Evan at 6 Months

I can't believe this boy is 6 months old. I think I say this every month but really. Why do babies have to grow up so fast? Evan is officially 6 months old. We will not have his 6 month check up until he is almost 7 months. I don't know his height or head circumference but I did weigh him. He is a load to carry around at 19 pounds.

Evan is still not sleeping through the night. In fact, now that we are back in Alabama, he has been waking up every 1-3 hours. No, I am not exaggerating.

I started feeding him cereal and usually apples once a day. He doesn't like to eat from a spoon. A lot of the time, he mashes his lips together so that I can't feed him. If he does eat it, he will gag or just spit it out. I don't know how much actually goes through.

I am just assuming that some cereal is going through and that it is the culprit to his constipation the past couple of days. He hasn't pooped in a couple of days and he's been gassy. When I started feeding Luc cereal, he became constipated. I am just assuming that Evan is getting some cereal in him and that the same thing is happening. Anyway, the nurse at his doctor's office said that I could just stop feeding him until I get back to Austin and see Dr Mani.

Here are some fun things that Evan has been doing:

-smiles most of the time

-reaches for me

-still loves to watch Luc

-loves to grab anything within reach

-of course anything he grabs goes directly to his mouth

-he is sitting pretty good without support

-he scoots all over the place

-is very cuddly

-loves his burp clothes (strange I know but it is his lovey)

- loves to suck his toes

-fake coughs and gags to make us laugh

-When I wave, he throws his arm around like crazy. I can't decide if this is his wave or just a movement

Evan scooting from Noelle McNeil on Vimeo.

Luc and Evan comparisons at 6 months:
-Luc 17 lbs; Evan 19 lbs
-Luc started crawling right after his 6 month birthday; Evan is almost there
-Luc was sleeping through the night; Evan is not even close
-Both were happy, smiley babies
-Both grabbed everything and put everything in their mouths