A day in the life...

Our new life that is...we have a pretty good rhythm going on...if you know me, you know I love a good organized day...we pretty much have that here now...and each day seems to run a little smoother...one of my core beliefs as a parent is that chaos breeds chaos...if I can get the days running in such a way that the boys know what to expect and when...things run much more smoothly. :)

Little Bit and I start our day between 6 and 7am. We come downstairs and I enjoy some Starbucks and Fox news while he eats his breakfast.
Between 7 and 8am we hear Moses waking up...Little bit goes in the bouncy seat and sits in the bathroom doorway while I get a quick shower...me not getting a shower first thing automatically equals a less than lovely day...just one of those things I NEED every morning to feel good. :)

8:30-9ish...we all have breakfast together while Little bit watches...this is his best awake time of the day. :)

From breakfast until noonish...we craft at the table...

...Moses likes to sit next to me and read or draw...

...we get down on the floor to play trains...or cars or to read...

...I am relearning what can and cannot be done with one hand...

Noon-we all have lunch! :) Moses' special treat this week has been to eat lunch in his new wagon...it came to our house filled with baby goodies from all the folks at our church. :)
~*~
The best part of the noon hour is that Doug comes home sometime around then!!! This is his fabulous new schedule. :) He goes in in the wee hours of the morning but is generally home between noon and one each day! :)

1:30pm is nap time...usually for both of the boys...this is generally when Doug will catch up on sports and I do crafty or bloggy things. :)
3-4pm both boys wake up and they each get something to eat. :)
5-7pm We eat dinner, play, hang out, run an errand, etc. :)
7pm Moses gets a shower and is in bed...Doug goes to bed soon after.
7-8 or so...I clean up the house...sweep, load the dishwasher, make Doug's lunch for the next day, etc. :) I basically try to get as much done as I can before Aaron wakes up from his latest nap.
8-9:30 I feed Aaron and get him settled for the night and then I go to bed. :) This schedule has allowed me to get at least 8 hours of sleep a night...which makes for much better days. :)

There are also times throughout the day that I find both boys occupied...I will throw in some laundry or do some other little task...I HAVE to have a clean and neat house or I go a little nutso. :) Goes along with my chaos breed chaos theory...things seems to go more smoothly when the house is neat. :)

Hope you enjoyed a peek into our new days! :)
xoxo

a peek...

I couldn't wait to share...

...they still have some work needed...more soon!

Happy Friday!
xoxo

still here...

we are finally getting to a "normal" stage...I have lots to share...new projects, new schedules...new ideas but for now how about some new eye candy? I promise to catch you up really soon! :)
xoxo

the warm weekend...

We took full advantage of the super warm weekend...Saturday and Sunday we went to parks...

Moses got to stretch his legs and run around like a crazy toddler should. :) I love the look on his face in this photo...

Moses has really enjoyed his extra time with his best buddy...there are times that people give us grief for just how attached Moses is to Doug but I think that every boy should be so lucky...Doug is attentive, fun and loves nothing more than making Moses laugh...Doug going back to work today put Moses in a sad little funk. There were tears when he realized that Doug was not here this morning...he spent a lot of time looking out of the window waiting for him to come home...and A LOT of time getting some extra loving from his other buddy Doggy. :) The joy on Moses' face when Doug got home was a beautiful thing. :)

The two buddies had a blast at the parks...running and playing and being silly. :)

We even got to eat lunch outside...warm and sunny...a super weekend. :)

Little bit found his thumb...SO stinkin' sweet.

This is where the littlest one likes to be...all snug in the sling...

Last night we went on a walk...I carried Aaron in the Baby Bjorn...when we got home Moses wanted a turn using it...first he wanted to carry Aaron in it...but he settled for Doggy.

And here's a good idea if you need one...Moses' activity stuff was starting to take over the top shelf of the closet...then I thought of this as a way of storing it all...an inexpensive over the door shoe rack had perfect sized compartments for all of his art supplies, stickers, play dough and more...the less I wanted Moses to get into something the higher up I put it in the rack.

boys...

You're not tired of seeing them right? Cause I'm not tired of looking at them. :)

I make em cute, right? :)

Enjoying our last day of 80 degrees...winter is supposed to come back this week...
...say a little prayer for us...Doug goes back to work tomorrow. :(
xoxo

happy things...

i got 9 hours of sleep last night.
i have three sweet boys to love on.
it's supposed to get over 80 degrees today!
we are getting out of the house!
i don't have to make dinner again until the end of March thanks to MOPS and our church!
i got aaron's announcement done!
spring is coming!

God is good to us!
i have a couple of fun non-baby things to share soon!

hope your day is happy and warm, too!
xoxo

a thank you...

...to my wonderful mother in law who is leaving us today. :( We are sad to see her go..she was more help than I could have ever asked for...so thanks Lillian for doing all that you did...laundry and cooking and dishes and caring for our family! We know that it is partly due to you that we are doing so well and have been able to acclimate to our new life. :)

I know I am blessed to have great in laws and we are SO thankful that she could be here...we all loved having you around and we miss you already! :)

We love you and miss you and hope you can come back again soon! :)

xoxo

does it get better?

Seriously...I thought my life was pretty wonderful before but right now, in this moment, I feel guilty for how much I am blessed and how amazing my life is...Aaron is wonderful...he eats well, sleeps well, snuggles well...I have already forgotten what life was like before him.

Moses has once again surpassed our hopes and expectations for how he has taken to his new little brother...he is helpful and kind and already protective of him...it is SUCH a blessing to me to see him love his little brother the way he already does. :)
And you already know how wonderful I think my husband is. :) Couldn't ask for anyone better to help me raise these wonderful boys...seeing him with Aaron makes me love him all over again. :)

Did I mention that Aaron is nearly edible?

And let me just tell you that having a great mother in law around all week has also been wonderful. I am certain that I have one of the best. :)

My heart is even more full than my arms...I am so blessed and so thankful...God is so good! Only God could have made this transition as effortless as it has been so far. :)

And we got snow to boot! Moses earned his keepby shoveling the sidewalks. :)

Life is good and our only complaint is that Doug's mom is leaving tomorrow. Hope this finds you wading around in blessings as well!!

xoxo

a real post...

Hello to lovely you! I feel like I can finally sit down and tell you all about our new adventure. :) We are doing SO well and all feel SO SO blessed!! :) Part of this post is just for me to document Aaron's birth so sorry if it's not all that interesting to you... :)

We went in on Tuesday at 4pm to be induced (after much much begging on my behalf)...Moses was able to stay with my sister in law at our house, which was a HUGE relief to us...and he did really well we are told. :) Things progressed slowly through the evening and into the night...not a whole lot changed from the time we got there until about 4am or so when they broke my water...after that Aaron's birth was very similar to Moses' minus the pain factor. I will just say now that I am in love with an epidural!! :) Having one this go round made everything so much more pleasant...there was only one 10-15 minute period that I really felt a lot of pain...it was during this time frame that I remember repeating to myself "I can do all things through Christ"...over and over...stopping occasionally to ask Doug if I could do it? Even pushing was almost pain free...which still amazes me when I compare the births of my two boys. Aaron arrived after only 20 minutes of pushing...it amazed me how focused I could be on the task when there was not a blinding pain distracting me.

A funny thing, then a scary thing...UVA is a teaching hospital...which meant that I had a nice sized audience in the room for the delivery...I would say about 10 people or so...each and every one was wonderful...I kept my eyes closed a lot to forget they were there...But each time I pushed...each and EVERY one of them would say something encouraging to me (good job...you're doing so well...keep it up...excellent) ...which eventually would make me laugh mid push...I am sure they thought I was a basket case.

The scary thing was that Aaron had the cord around his neck when he was born so he didn't take a breath for what seemed like forever...though I am sure the room was humming with noise I could hear nothing but that baby's silence...I about lost it when he finally cried...immediately thankful that once again God took care of my baby (Moses was born with the cord around his neck as well).

Aaron and his daddy...one of the first times Doug got to hold him.

Sweet little face...just moments old.

:)

Love this sweet little bundle. :)

Moses loves his little brother...he is always trying to help out...he will go get diapers or try to burp him...so far he is very gentle and there has been no negatives to speak of... :)

And the answer to the hair question? Brown...though not quite as much as Moses had at birth. :) Such a sweet little bird so far...I love that we are proving wrong all of the folks that told us that since our first was so easy that this one would be a challenge. :)

We are just enjoying our days here...taking it all one day at a time. :) We are truly, truly blessed. :)

xoxo

a snack for your eyes...

We are all doing well...I think we have turned the corner and every day I find myself saying more and more..."I can do this...I can do this". Last night my wonderful newborn gave me eight and a half hours of sleep. Moses is getting back to himself...Doug is wonderful and I don't know how we would be doing if my mother in law wasn't here...thanks to my father in law for letting us borrow her for a week. :)
I will update you soon with stories and photos but for now you can nibble on another photo of our sweet baby Aaron...whose brother adores him and asks for him first thing in the morning. :)

xoxo

home.

we are very glad to be here.
i slept no more than 4 1/2 hours since we went to the hospital on tuesday.
it was thanks to all the nurses and doctors that came and went and came (just as i fell asleep).

but they were all fabulous.
it was ALL fabulous.
and now i am being spoiled by husband and mother in law...who will be here for a week, yay!
i will update and share all the fun details as i can.
thanks for all your sweet words.

xoxo

Moses Says...

Since Mommy is still at the hospital, I thought I would come on here and show everyone what I found. This is a picture of me (the bigger one) and my new little brother Aaron. He's pretty big, but I'm strong and can hold him. Mommy is doing good but needs to rest more though. She says she'll be home tomorrow. Bye

While You Were Sleeping.......

Hi....it's me...April from down the road at JaneSays.

I am honored to be the chosen one to share this good news...and OH BOY !!!! is it good news.

He is here !!!

Aaron Howard Johnsen was born at 5:43 am this morning
and yes you are correct...judging by the size of that belly we have been seeing lately
he is a big boy.... 9lbs 9oz.

Crystal is doing GREAT and loving up on all her men I am sure.

Please feel free to leave your comments and well wishes here for Crystal and Doug and even little Moses as he embarks on his little journey as the big brother.
I will duck in and allow the comments so when Crystal gets home she can simply take a peek at all you have to say.

Pray for her speedy recovery and for the newly emerged poppy seed.

I heart you guys....and congratulations !!!!
and in true JaneSays fashion....
have a happy day

keeping busy...

I have to do something to keep my hands busy...my house is clean...laundry is done...bags packed...I am just this side of crazy town...

So while I sat and watched TV last night I whipped up these beauties...

Not sure if they will be barrettes or pins...or what...but I love the fun with color and fabric combos...the waiting is killing me...trying really hard not to fret or worry...to just be and enjoy the last few moments I have with just one little boy...but also very eager to meet my new little boy...

Moses is doing better...we are at the whiny part of recovery...moms you know what that means right? Doug is officially off of work and Moses is soaking up the love of his daddy...if there is one person in the world who likes to be with Doug more than me it is Moses. :)

waiting and waiting...

xoxo