Van is almost 4 weeks old!

My little boy is almost 4 weeks old. I can't believe it! My life has been so crazy! I have to say that I am handling it much better than I thought I would. It's much easier with the 2nd baby. I am adjusting to taking care of him and don't feel like I am in a fog like I was last time. I am much more prepared! Of course, being prepared for a baby does not make taking care of two kids easy at all! I don't have time to do anything when I have both kids. Luckily, I have lots of help and only have both kids by myself a few days a week. But, on those days I am beat by the end of the day!

Van is such a joy that it makes it all worth it. I am so in love with him! He is such a good baby. He is a lot more vocal that Riley was at this age and he doesn't sleep nearly as much as most newborns but he is still a pretty good baby. He'll sit in his bouncy seat and just look around for the longest time. He's very curious and very serious. He only has one look and it's "serious". You can almost picture the wheels turning in his head trying to figure this all out. Van is doing pretty good at nighttime now. He wouldn't sleep without me holding him for the first few weeks but now I can put him in his crib and he'll talk himself to sleep. He doesn't really care for the binky which is good and bad. It will be nice to not have to deal with binkies but it sure is nice to "put a cork in it" when they are fussy.

Overall, we are pretty stinkin' happy here. Life is crazy busy and I sure don't get enough sleep but having two beautiful, healthy kids is about as good as it gets. Oh, and our furry kids, Brown and Cal, are great with Van..... just like I knew they would be!

Riley's 3rd Birthday

Riley had her 3rd birthday party on November 21st. We started the weekend off going to the zoo (which is her favorite place) and then had a party at our house Sunday evening. By the time her actual birthday rolled around she was a little confused as to when her birthday really was. However, she loved celebrating it for several days. She opened all her gifts by herself and had a great time playing with all her toys. I can't believe she is 3! She can't believe it either. She loves telling people how old she is. Riley has grown so much. She pretty much wants to do everything on her own now. She wants to dress herself, pick out her food and brush her own teeth. I love how grown up she's getting but sometimes it's a battle trying to get out the door. She wants to put her jacket on herself, open the door herself, get in the car seat by herself..... sometimes we don't have time for all that! Still, she is so much fun right now. No one could entertain us like she does!