Set backs and egg hunts

Today my spirits are a little down. Poor Cache woke up from nap yesterday with a slight fever yesterday (100.2) and I started him on Tylenol right away. He was, expectedly, a little winey and ornery, but otherwise ok. This morning he woke up without a fever but more wobbly. He's back to the pre-ataxia awkward stage where he'd run into doors and floors. I still have him on Tylenol an Motrin rotation but I'm hoping that he gets better quickly he is also a lot more winey and stubborn today. And tired. It all seems to be tied together.
But we did get to have an Easter egg hunt today, regardless! His friends Carmen and Cloe came over to hunt for the eggs the easter bunny so graciously left in our yard two days early! Thank you easter bunny! Here are the pictures.

For Aunt Liana

This post goes out to Auntie Liana! She's going through some rough spots and we are posting some pictures to help pass the time!

I've been meaning to get pictures of the kids with their "big brother" and "baby sister" shirts that Santa brought them for Christmas, but I hadn't coordinated it until now :) not that you can really read them anyway lol I had to take the pictures first thing after getting them dressed because Avelyn is Princess Drool and Cache with a white shirt...well, that doesn't need explaining ;)
Spring has finally peeked out behind those dreary winter clouds and we have sun! It's getting into the 50's most days and most of the snow is gone! Woo hoo for warmer weather!
Also, I just discovered that Cache is getting his 2 yeaar mollars finally! Maybe that's why he's extra cranky sometimes. Looks like monkey boy is going to the dentist this spring!

"Cache, I'm trying to take pictures..."

Love them!

Avelyn wasn't happy about being put down at first

Then it got better

What happens if I stick my finger in her ear, mom?

Oh! What if I stick it in my ear?

Somehow Cache's feet took center stage!

Easter eggs and random

Cache got to dye some Easter eggs today! Mostly it was me putting them in the bowls and him choosing the colors. I tried to get him to put the eggs in the bowls but that just resulted in an egg getting dropped from a distance and splattering blue dye everywhere! When I tried to get him to do it nicely, he ended up not really holding them but pushing my hand down. I think he was trying to avoid getting his fingers in the dye. Silly boy :). His friend Cloe got to come over and play too! She did not mind getting her fingers messy!
And of course, a picture of Avelyn, who was napping while we dyed eggs! Happy easter!

Quiet Moments With My Boy

It's always a toss up as to whether bedtime is going to be a fight or easy. Tonight, not only was it easy, but it's probably my favorite so far.
Being that he is my oldest and not a baby anymore, I don't get a whole lot of quiet snuggle time anymore. When he was smaller, I remember rocking him to sleep and rubbing his back while he slowly relaxed and drifted off to sleep. I remember not being able to wait until he would reach for me and hug me because he wanted to. I felt anticipation for the first time he would say "I love you" and know what it meant.
Well tonight after saying our prayers and giving him kisses he asked me for a hug. Of course, this would get him a few more minutes until bedtime, but it's nothing I would deny him! Just when I thought he was done, I started to pull away and he said, "hug?" And then he pulled me close and began to rub my back, my arms, my shoulder. And all the while saying, " I love you". It was possibly the best moment I can think of with him. I just love that little boy. He is a bright light that was sent to shine on our family. :)
Here's to quiet moments :)

Early Mornings

Now I realize that I am spoiled by having two kids that usually like to sleep in. On most days, Cache doesn't get up until around 8/8:30 and Avelyn has been about 7:30 or 8:00! And since she started sleeping all night I am even more spoiled. So on those mornings when Avelyn wakes up before 7(6:45 lol) I am usually a little irked that I am getting up so soon, but when I see that smiling face waiting for me it makes it worth while. And on special mornings, like this morning, I love it. I know I usually post about big events or fun activities, but it's the special, quiet moments that I really want to remember too.

After taking her downstairs to nurse, she eats with her eyes shut and her arm snuggling her bear. I'm glad she snuggles her bear now because I don't know if I'd have any hair left if she didn't! She pulls hard! After she eats, she's in this between sleep and awake stage when I pick her up to burp her. She rests her little head on my shoulder and makes little happy sounds. The room around is still relatively dark thanks to Daylight Savings Time and Cache is still sound asleep. It's a sweet, quiet moment that I can share with my daughter, the same as I got to share with Cache when he was a baby. I think she actually slept for another 10 minutes on my shoulder because she was quiet and I  could only hear her breathing. Then she stirred and turned and she just watched me. I got to trace her features with my finger and she just smiled and watched once in a while she would giggle for a second, but it was such a sweet, quiet moment. Such a departure from her new favorite thing to do, which is squeal loudly!

Here's to quiet mornings!

So blessed

I just love my little family. I can't imagine having it any other way. Some days I feel like it's a lot to handle with two kids, but most of the time I am overwhelmed with how much I love them! This morning I had the privelage to watch Jared chase Cache on his hands and knees as he squeeled and giggled. :)
Avelyn has been such a good sleeper! She sleeps all night in her crib (12-13 hours) and doesn't make a sound! Thankfully, Cache has been sleeping much better lately. He's been gluten free/soy free for about 2 months (+/-) and hasn't had a recurrance yet. The neurologist suggested that he might have another problem if he gets sick again (has a fever) so we will hope for the best. He hasn't had a true fever more than 2 or 3 times in his short little life, but I'm not hoping for one any time soon. ;) He's been keeping busy playing with his friends and chasing flies around the house. I'm assuming they are coming in on the wood we are burning, but there are wasps too, so I'm hoping no one gets bit. He will find a fly and yell, "thly!" and tell us to "get it!" This means he wants us to get the zapping fly swatter and zap them. He laughs when he hears the "pop!" and says, "Scared me! Throw it away?" It's just so exciting to him. It's really cute. And Avelyn just loves him. She laughs at him when he brushes his teeth, dances, runs...just about anything :)
Since last time, I wasn't able to post pictures (something to do with the blogger site) I will do so now!

Avelyn found the last of the banana bread!

Cache loves chocolate chips!

"What? Was I not supposed to eat it?"

Out shoveling snow with the kids

Big helper!

Riding the train at Christmas time!

Sitting with Santa! I wish I had had more time to post more blogs just about this!

Avelyn was pretty happy sitting on Santa's lap, but Cache was a little reluctant. He at least wasn't crying! What a good Santa!! You can still see his eyes are a little crossed from when he was sick, but that was the last major thing to fix itself.

These days we are exploring the joys of having an independent 2 year old. Cacher has always been such a good kid. He shares his toys and asks if someone is "ok" when they fall. He asks for permisson before eating things to make sure it's ok and he brings the baby "snacks" when he thinks she's hungry. Or he just brings me the nursing pillow and says, "She's hungry" He's very snuggly and loves to sit on our laps. I love that he becoming his own person, I just wish we didn't have to have so many tantrums! At least once a day we have to have very slow, cranky conversations about why he needs to eat his vitamins, take naps, or not do unsafe things. He can be very loud and loves to say "I said no!" which, or course just makes it all worse for him. I struggle with finding ways to try to get him to listen sometimes and it all makes me wonder if I'm being a good mom or if I am just expecting too much of a 2 year old. I just think he is capable of so much more, but I do want him to be a kid as much as possible. Hopefully, when the weather warms up, we can run off some steam at the park and not push mommy's buttons as much. :) In fact, the weather was nice yesterday (50's and sunny) so we took the kids out for a ride in the new bike trailer I got for Christmas!Such a nice thing to have! Cache loved it and didn't want to get out!

Took the kids for a ride!

Snuggly warm!

As for Jared and I, we have both been working on our health this year. I decided that I didn't want to wait to decide to have another kid before I loose weight. I want to enjoy being smaller and healthier for me. We got a membership to the local wellness center at my work and take turns going when he gets home from work. I also go to Zumba twice a week and that's a lot of fun! I even got asked if I was a dancer in high school because she thought I was good! She said she follows me whenever she can't see the instructor. Way to boost my confidence! So far we are both doing well with it and I have even gotten to a weight that I haven't been since high school! Probably less than when we got married! Well, I guess that keeps me motivated for now! I'm hoping to continue to do well.

Love and hugs to all!