Sleeping

Thankfully Oliver has been a good sleeper.  In the beginning we had to wake him for all of his feedings, and even now we still wake him for the majority of his feedings.

Oliver likes to be swaddled to sleep, or at least we assume he does.  When he sleeps downstairs I cheat and just tuck a blanket around him.  Usually when I go to check on him he looks like this.........Jesse claims his privates must get warm (and yes I just typed that, granted I might have changed a word to make it more appropriate.)

We are very thankful he is a good sleeper, I'm not going to actually type how long he sleeps at night now, as I don't want to jinx things.  But if we continue at this pace, I will be one happy mom!  And I just want to point out that I have been a very nice wife and have not been waking up my husband for any night duties......so don't let him fool you (he is in charge of Bella at night, so that doesn't mean he is completely off the hook as she still wakes up occasionally during the night and usually is up for the morning around 4-5am).

Funny Pictures

We finally took a picture where the two of them are not just laying on the floor.  We actually got Bella to hold her brother.  Don't you just love when babies throw out gang signs.  And again Bella looks just thrilled, I think the take a picture with your baby brother might be a little overdone.

 Now we have two pouters.

 Apparently the next day, Jesse tried to recreate the shot.  Pants might be needed to actually become a picture that's a keeper!

The Adoring Little Brother

I'm a happy boy.

 Because I'm laying with my sister.

 I think I'll try this arm waving thing she does.

 Sometimes we hold hands.

 Could I smile any bigger!!

 I think Bella is the greatest.

Bella Style

If your kids are in need of new clothes, for either this year or next year; run....run to Target right now.  In case you don't get to Target as often as I do, they now have a lot of their summer clothes sizes newborn up to 5T on clearance for 30-70% off.  I was able to find some really cute shirts and shorts for Bella costing only $1.75, which is crazy cheap.  So good luck finding a good deal...........Bella is enjoying her new clothes!

We are "those neighbors"

Jesse has been busy gutting the basement and getting rid of all the mold.  We had removed the majority of it last year, but still had not tackled the bathroom or the wall between the garage and the basement.

Did you know that packing peanuts and packing styrofoam make good quality insulation?  We didn't.  Jesse would like these next two pictures to be labeled "What were they thinking?"  or "WTF".

We found lots of mold which has now been removed and the materials are piled at the end of our driveway.

 Yes we have a toilet and a tub/shower combo included in the pile.

 And if you can't see it in the background, that is a for sale sign in our neighbors yard.  I'm sure they greatly appreciate the large pile of trash right next to their yard as they are trying to sell their house.

And there is still more to demo, so that pile will remain for an additional week.  Yes we are "those neighbors".

Too many people on my blanket

This past weekend Grandpa and Grandma Sneller, Aunt Erin, and cousin Beckett came to visit.  Bella was completely overwhelmed by the extra boys around, and was not amused when they were sharing her play blanket.  In fact for part of the time she was laying there with her arms crossed and wouldn't move or make a sound.  She hasn't quite gotten used to Oliver yet, and was probably worried that someone else would be invading her space.  It's funny to try and read her body language and guess at what she is thinking, as far as her reaction to Oliver.

First Day Alone with Two

The help has all gone home or back to work for now, so this week it's just me and the kids.  I figured it might be a little bit of a balancing act, and there might be some crying as they learn to take turns getting what they need and want.
Yesterday was good practice as Jesse was home but working on the basement for 12 hours, and covered in dust, so he wasn't able to pop up and help when needed.  The day actually went great, and we even managed to fit in a couple of errands to run and get things Jesse needed to continue his project.
But today is a different story....someone is being good......so far.

And someone is being high maintenance since she woke up at 4:30am this morning.

Crazy Girl

I have probably mentioned this before, but Bella has been a crazy girl lately.  She is just moving all over the place.  Rolling across the room, grabbing and throwing toys, doing circles in bed (now that we have a rail up otherwise I'm sure she would be back on the floor many times a night).  She loves to grab the blanket she is laying on and pull it all over the place.

 Usually that means pulling it over her face.

And for the first time this morning, I had Bella help me open some presents for Oliver.  She had a great time pulling out the tissue paper and even some of the items inside the bags/boxes.  She then proceeded to roll around grabbing the tissue paper, tearing at the tissue paper, having a great time for 1.5 hours.

And Oliver just loves to watch his sister.  He has to be on his own blanket though, as crazy Bella is bound to kick him (not on purpose) or just roll over him.  We definitely can not leave them alone together for even a minute.

Where do the days go?

I haven't had a lot of time to post, the days seem to filled with someone's feeding schedule.  But I thought I would post a couple more pictures for you all.

Oliver's first bath at home.

 Being a good sleeper

 Bella hanging out.

Notice Bella's problem.  Her shirts never stay down.  I have a plan to make clothes for Bella that will help with her midriff bearing problem, I just need to find the time.

And just because I knew you all really wanted to see a disgusting picture.

These are my swollen feet and ankles, the picture doesn't really do it justice, but they absolutely revolt me.  I was told it was due to the fluids I was on during the delivery, and the only way to get rid of it was to sweat it out or pee it out.  Apparently this will take awhile, as we are over 1 week out and they are still swollen, but doing a little better.

4th of July Drama

Did everyone have a good 4th of July?  I didn't have high expectations for the 4th, being we had a newborn at home.  But I had hoped we could do a little something as Bella has shown enjoyment for watching fireworks in the past.
Our neighbors were having a get together, a little afternoon swimming, bbq, and then fireworks at dusk.  Jesse and Bella went over for the swimming portion and as usual Bella had a good time.  Oliver and I joined them over there for dinner.  And by 7pm, Bella was a fussy, whinny mess.  Apparently our even small plans were not going to be working out.  And this is where life with Bella gets tricky.  If she's tired or sick/teething, then there is no compromise with her.  She needs complete attention and she pretty much needs to be in her bed.  If there are evening plans there is probably only about a 25% chance we will be able to participate with Bella.   The reality is we either have to have a babysitter for her, or we have to have the activity at our house so we can put her to bed.
And yes this becomes very stressful for us.  Just last night Jesse still wanted to go back over to the party to enjoy the fireworks, and even though I was tired and my feet were swollen and needed to rest, I was tired of being left behind.  But that is pretty much the reality of our life, we can't participate in activities like everyone else, and very rarely can we attend together.  It ended up that we put Bella and Oliver to bed, and went out on our deck to watch the fireworks together, me with my very swollen feet up.  We complained a little about our predicament and hoped for better 4th of July's to come!

We're back home

Oliver Daniel Kuhlen was born June 30th at 1:30pm (sharing a birthday with his Aunt Erin).  Weighing in at 8lbs7oz and 20 inches long.  It was a fairly short delivery with only minor complications.  I'm thinking our new son might take after his dad, as the doctor told me he wasn't tolerating the pushing well at all and I needed to get him out ASAP, granted I think I only pushed for 30-40 minutes, so just like his dad he was impatient :-)  He also pooed all over the doctor when he came out, so maybe he was just in a hurry to get out so he didn't have to go inside of me.  Thanks Oliver!

 Bella got to meet her new brother later on that evening, she wasn't too impressed.  Her face cracks me up in this picture.

 We brought Oliver home on Saturday and so far he has actually been easier to care for at home.  I think he is finally able to get food from me, so he is pretty content and like most newborns is sleeping pretty much all the time.

 I'm curious to see how long it takes Bella to really pay attention to Oliver.  She will watch him sometimes out of the corner of her eyes, and if one of us is holding him she will take quick glances at him.  I'm pretty sure she has no idea what to make of him for now.

 Of course Colby is in love!