MOVING TO NEW BLOG

SINCE I AM NO LONGER THE MOTHER OF MAX ALONE, I'M SWITCHING OVER TO A NEW BLOG TITLE. YOU CAN NOW FIND ME UNDER: LINKE FAM BLOG

Cannon Beach Trip

We just arrived back from Cannon Beach this afternoon. Had a great time. Kids did great in the car both ways (i.e. slept). Mya missed her swing. Max was in heaven with access to Sydney 24/7. I'm tired but glad for the adventure. Life is good!

Here are a few photos...

Mr. Manners

With Max entering toddlerhood and all that goes with it, I sometimes worry that I'm raising a social deviant. Typical of a toddler, he is full of whining, screaming fits. Yesterday he couldn't get enough attention and kept telling me to put Mya in the "swing!". A quote that I read in a parenting book kept running through my head, "I gave up 9 months of drinking for this?!"

This morning has been a bit hectic as I've been packing to get us out the door. We're meeting my mom and Sydney at Oaks Park at 9:30 to enjoy the toddler rides. Then at 11:30 we're leaving the park to come back, eat a quick lunch and head to Cannon Beach for a few days. Go, mama, go!

Max is sitting on the couch watching Berenstain Bears (save your lectures for another day) and I walked through the room to grab a few items. I sneezed and he immediately responded, "bless you!"....while staring absentmindedly at the tv. I thanked him then grabbed his juice cup to put upstairs. His immediate reply was "Juice please! Pllleeeease!" This is so much better than the typical whining squeal he's given to date. It warmed my heart a bit to think that at least he's learning manners from us. He may turn out to be a gentleman in the end.

Getting Bigger by the Day

Alternative Nursery Decor

Where to begin? One of these magnificent wildlife nursery sets can be yours for $9.88 from Cabela's. They offer it in Deer and Loons and there is a lovely variety of coordinating accessories (pillows, blankets, drapes, etc.) that are available as well.

I think a gun rack would look lovely above the crib, don't you?

Made in the USA of course. Happy shopping!

Summer Fun

Max, Mya and I have been having a great time on my maternity leave. A lot of this is thanks to my friend Melissa who has the best play date ideas. Some of our recent favorites include....

The Play Boutique in Lake Oswego

This is a 5,000 sq. ft. indoor play area located inside Wizer's shopping center. The room is filled with toys that Max loves. I enjoy that it is less crowded than OMSI and that I can lounge in the mom's area with Mya yet still keep an eye on Max.

My favorite play time is the Coffee Break Stay & Play. You can order a coffee and lunch on your way in the door which they deliver to you. Genius! They also offer craft time, music time and story time on those days.

Preschooler Rides at Oaks Park

We just returned from this. For $6 your child (6 and under) can ride unlimited kiddie rides from 9:30 to 11:30. I wasn't sure how Max would do but he had an awesome time and was such a big boy!

We started off on a tugboat ride that begins swinging and then spinning along a track (pictured above). As the ride started I tucked him in close to my side and told him how much fun we'd have. Apparently I was really selling it because a little girl in front of us turned around and squealed, "Yeah, and we're going to spin around so fast!" Off we went and I have to tell you that this ride had a bit more motion I expected. I took a peek at Max and his expression was perfectly calm. No problemo. At the end of the ride I had a hard time getting him to leave our seat.

After the tugboat he went on the motorcycles. He was a bit impatient to get the ride started but did great sitting on his bottom and riding on his own. Apparently the ride could use a bit more excitement because as we exited he was pointing towards the tugboat asking to go back.

Next was the airplanes which actually go up in the air. It melted my heart when he leaned forward to the gun in front of him to get his target in his sights like the bigger boys. (Yes, I do realize how wrong that statement sounds!) The carousel and train ride were a success as well. We'll definitely be back!

I'm looking forward to next summer when Mya will be 1 and better able to enjoy the activities around her. Although I won't be on leave then...sniff, sniff!

Ready For Her Close Up - Nearly 5 Weeks

Here Let Me Help You With That!

As you can see from these photos Max is turning into quite the big helper. Nevermind that in some of these he was the one to remove the binky in the first place. Still, his concentration in inserting the binky just so cracks me up.

Smilebox Attempt #2

Make a Smilebox photobook

Mya's Arrival

Make a Smilebox photobook

Curls

Mya's hair decided it would like to be curly after today's bath...but only until it was dry. I'm still unsure of what color it will end up being. It started out darker than Max's but appears to be lightening up some. She's definitely more dark brown than black now. The eyes? Time will tell. I call them navy blue for now.

Our wee one is growing quickly and starting to settle into a routine. Things are starting to settle down in our household. Alex and I can normally count on a few hours alone after Max goes to bed. We usually end up doing exciting things like laundry or picking up toys but hey, we'll take it.

Max is going through a growth spurt and is eating like a maniac. His new word of the day today...pizza. Refer to the Naomi entry below for reference.

Naomi

Is she not one of the most beautiful little girls you've ever seen? She has amazingly nice parents to boot. Naomi and her parents arrived at our house this evening bearing pizzas and sodas. You 3 are welcome at our house any time!

Mya Update

An updated photo of Mya. She's finally starting to keep those eyes open long enough for us to enjoy. I admit that I'm getting giddy at the thought of dressing her in all the cute dresses that have been passed on to us through the generosity of family. Bring on the pink!

And now you will see why I think Mya looks nothing like Max or I....she takes after Daddy and BaNoi!

Le, my mother-in-law, came up for a 4 day visit. We had a great time sharing Mya with her. P.S. Yes, that is breast milk in the bottle and not formula. I'm currently suffering through the "marathon eater" stage. Just when it doesn't seem possible that she could stomach another ounce....time to eat again!

Max is doing well. He has his moments of not understanding why I can't just put the baby down and pick him up but overall he's great. Here is a shot of him sharing his double stroller. He likes to reach over and point out her features. "Eyes! Nose! Mouth!" Also note how well the color of my skin matches the white of my hoodie. Thank you, Oregon Sunshine!

A True Mother's Day Gift

Strrrrretch!

My husband has been an amazing helper since the birth of Mya. I don't know what I would without the support of him and my family. Last night he gave me what I consider to be the best Mother's Day present ever. He instructed me to sleep upstairs for the night and he would take care of Mya so that I could get some solid rest. I was able to pump before bed and one quick session during the night which took care of her needs. What a nice break!

As a Mother's Day gift from Mya, she is resting peacefully in her swing. Max never took to his so I'm giddy at the thought that we have another soothing mechanism available to us. The other one that she is fond of is the Bjorn. However if you'll remember back to Max's newborn days you'll know that I spent ages with him attached to me in the Bjorn. We nearly grew into Siamese twins. I'm not going there again so am hopeful that she'll take to the swing.

Max hasn't had any specific gifts for me other than being his cute self. Here's a cute Max story to share from yesterday. My sister and niece came over to keep my company while Alex was out. Max began chanting, "food, food" to Shelby. Shelby said, "Max do you want some food? What do you want to eat?" His immediate response was, "hot dog!" His communication skills have been growing by leaps and bounds the past few months.

Okay, back to reality here. Hope you all enjoy a great Mother's Day!

Welcome Mya Lynne!

Okay, just a few quick details about Mya's arrival. Someday soon I'll have the time for additional pics and stories.

Thursday, April 30th was the big day. We arrived 2 hours early, they prepped us and we rolled back to the OR pretty much on time. The first comment I heard as she began to emerge was, "Wow, she has a lot of dark hair!" followed by, "and a big head". The next words that followed her squall were, "It's a girl!" I can't say that I had an I told you so moment since I really wasn't sure but we're thrilled to add a daughter to the family. I think Alex is still processing the fact that we produced a girl this time.

Thus far she's a great baby. I'll credit it to her personality but it may also have something to do with the fact that we're not anxious first time parents as well. Alex has been a wonderful help and it makes me weepy already imagining when he goes back to work. Max has done beautifully with her and we refer to her as "your baby". He probably would have preferred a new Barney video but thats the breaks, kid.

We've had a couple of newborn issues to deal with. She has a very short frenulum (sp?) which is the skin attaching the tongue to the bottom of the mouth. It has presented a few feeding issues and could possibly present a speech issue in the future so we may have to have that clipped. From what I've heard, it's a quick relatively painless snip done by an ENT. She also lost exactly 10% of her body weight by the time of discharge so we have both ped and lactation appointments tomorrow to follow up and make sure she's on the upswing. Max had he same loss so at least it's a road we've been down before. He's certainly made up for it!

4

Unbelievably our family of 3 will grow to a family of 4 exactly 4 days from now. We've had a relaxing last weekend as a family of 3. A trip to Mt. Tabor Park on Friday, a day of errands yesterday and a day trip to Astoria today. We paid a visit to the Davis family and their adorable 1 month old, Connor. Max did well with him so I have my fingers crossed that he'll adjust okay if not perfectly smoothly. Here are a few shots of the past weekend...

38 weeks and Baby is ready to burst through the argyle.

Daddy picked up a free basketball hoop off of Craigslist. Max thanks him, his back does not.

We brought the swing back out. I just love Max's sweet cheeks in this photo.
Ooops, did I let this one slip in? Hey, we let the kid watch 30 minutes of Barney before bed. Although I'm starting to get concerned over his excitement for Baby Bop. If that's indicative of his taste in women, it's going to be a rough ride for me as a mother.

Alex and I work Monday and Tuesday but are off Wednesday to enjoy a day together, including foot treatments. Thursday it's off to the hospital and welcome Baby Linke!

Alternate Use for Tomato Frames

Oooo, a BABY!

Max had the pleasure of hanging out with our friend Miss Elizabeth and her wonderful mommy Suzanne last weekend. I thought I'd post his reaction. Although his facial expression might not show it, he was very interested in her and did a great job of being gentle. He even tried to hand her one of his rubber screws. I have a feeling she was such a hit because she was a short term addition to the house. Still, I'm proud of his good behavior with her!

Egg Dyeing with a Toddler