Hudson comes home!

     Many times over the past year and a half I wished I could go back and be that new mom again, to hold Quinten those first few hours, days, months...my wish has pretty much come true. It is eery sometimes how much the boys look alike. Hudson has a longer head then Quinn, but his features and facial expressions are already so similar. When I hold Hudson or he makes a certain face it takes us right back to those first few months when we first had Quinten. It will be interesting to see as Hudson gets older if the similarities continue.

which is which?!?!

This time around I am a much more relaxed, confident mom. No longer that worry wart wondering has my baby eaten enough, is he gaining enough weight. When I think about how much of my day was consumed with feeding, talking about feeding, and worrying about feeding it is amazing I had time and energy to enjoy Quinten as much as I did.

     Having a full term baby that weighed a more typical weight was a much more relaxed way to start off. I remember Quinten not even getting fully cleaned off before the nurse gave him to Jason in the OR and literally threw him a bottle to get his sugar levels up. Then the poor baby had to be poked in the foot every few hours to make sure he was maintaining his sugar. The first few days months I was so hyper focused on how much he was eating, it is amazing how I functioned otherwise. And now we laugh at how much he eats! The kid has an endless appetite. Jason and I both like food, a lot...apparently so do our boys. It looks like Hudson is going to follow in his big brother's footsteps and also enjoy eating. At his first visit to the doctor he was already up a few ounces from his birth weight. 7.54! Jason and I laugh at how big our food bill is going to be in a few years:)

At Hudson's 2nd week doctor visit he weighed 8.3 lbs. on an empty stomach!

And he is in the 70% for height.

     One thing I hope Hudson doesn't take after is Quinten's sleeping patterns. Our first night without GM & GP 's help was interesting to say the least Jason and I didn't know if we were coming or going. I think we passed in the hallway 3 times. But this too is already getting easier. Quinten's sleep schedule was messed up since we left for the hospital and he woke up to find us gone and our neighbor Allison at our house in the middle of the night. He is getting better and called for Daddy last night which was an awesome change for all of us!
     We have taken quite a few trips out in the first three weeks of this little guys life. Another huge difference then when we first had Q. Because we need to keep him amused, staying home and relaxing everyday really isn't an option. To celebrate being one week old we took the boys to the Greek festival (okay so we really went for the delicious gyros) and the Italian festival both were right up the street from our old house. We have been on playdates to Luca's house, our neighbor, and went to Longwood Gardens with Luca and Domenic to play in the fountains. I have even ventured on a shopping trip by myself with the boys, and it was quite successful! We have also had some visitors (GM & GP, Grandma Kathy & Mark, Gramps & Aunt Jody, and Nancy). Quinten took a special liking to Aunt Jody. And for the first time kicked mommy out of the playroom so he could play with her by himself!!!

     As for Hudson he sleeps pretty much all day and night.  He is awake more lately during the day, but I stilll have to wake him to eat sometimes.  He's an angel and puts up with a lot of hugs, kisses and cuddles from Quinn. Quinten always is asking "Baby doe?" when Hudson is not in plain sight.  Hudson is already bigger then Quinten was after 1 1/2 months!  And getting bigger every day.  He has a full head of hair, which is a little lighter then Q's was but the same great blue eyes like their Daddy. He really only cries when he is hungry or has gas, and has real tears.  He also smiles a lot (when he's awake) and is great at holding his head up.  He's amazing and we're soooo happy!!

Quinten is learning how to hop, skip, and when he jumps his feet actually get off the ground about an inch. Daddy has also taught him how to do jumping jacks, push ups, and lunges. He loves to play with any truck, ball, blows bubbles, he climbs on everything, runs everywhere, and loves putting lids on things. He is a wiz with puzzles and is very good at cleaning up after himself. He often asks for the vacuum and will follow me around the house pretending to vacuum with his shopping cart.  He knows all animals and their sounds, can say the ABC up to G in order then he gets a little confused. sings many songs on his own (twinkle twinkle, row row, ashes ashes, rock the baby) although Old McDonald is still his very favorite. Also loves to dance, play with other kids, he loves guitars but his favorite toy by far his is lawn mower that blows bubbles.   

Here are pictures from the last few weeks.

We didn't take too many pictures of me while I was pregnant, but Jason managed to snap a quick one between contractions at the hospital while we waited to be admitted.

Born 1:55 am June 1, 2013.

Proud Daddy!

Ready to go home:)

Kisses from Mama & Bopa

Getting some rest!

Big brother always helping!

Ready for his first Greek festival trip.

Apparently Quinten already showed Hudson how to do funny face!

Playtime with Mommy's camera!

Quinten's new reading chair.

Grandma Kathy and Mark bought Q an awesome new tractor.

The kids!

Loving the new double stroller on our trip to Longwood.

Playing in the fountains with friends.

Our morning playdates have been helping a lot with nap time. Both boys have been going down at the same time (12:30 for Q, then feed H and put him down). Then I do stuff around the house for about an hour and then lay down. The boys have been sleeping for almost 3 hours which is wonderful!

We are so blessed with our new little angel and couldn't be happier!

Quinten is an amazing big brother, growing smarter and sillier everyday, and quite the fashionista!

   

Baby #2 on the way!!!!

I originally wrote this post Friday afternoon. Unfortunately I didn't get around to posting it and a few hours later baby #2 was on his way! 

After a few more hospital visits I starting working half days for a few weeks and then stopped altogether. With this warm weather we have been having it feels like I have a jump start on summer! Quinten and I are already enjoying our time outside playing in the neighborhood. 

At our latest doctor appointment they guesstimated baby weighs about 7.1 lbs. we will see in just a few short days how close they were. Doctor said everything looks great, the shots and everything we went through must have worked because we start 39 weeks tomorrow and are officially scheduled for delivery a'la c-section Monday at 9:15!!!! Stay tuned for updated family pics:)

Friday night I started having contractions yet again. I was apprehensive about making another trip to the hospital only to be sent back home. But after about 20 minutes I was 99% sure this was the real deal. With Quinten already in bed our main focus was what would be the least disruptive for him. Thanks to our wonderful neighbors Q was able to stay in bed. Allison came down and stayed at our house until GM & GP Kurash could get there. After a few hours of intense contractions my water broke and Jason and I were prepped for surgery. With Q I remember having a few contractions after my water broke but nothing like this!

Hudson was born at 1:55am on June 1, 2013. He weighed 7.5 lbs and 22 inches long. Exactly 2 lbs. 3 inches longer then his big brother. The doctors had a tough time getting him out because he was balled up pretty high. Luckily I didn't feel anything except pressure soon after the spinal. Hudson's face looked a little smooshy on one side because he was pushed up against my septum. His face has already started to even out so much and the pediatrician said within a few weeks he should be pretty symmetrical.

Quinten, Mama, and Bopa have come to visit. It is strange to be away from him but I know he is having the time of his life playing and keeping my parents on their toes.

He is already a fan of his baby brother and it will be interesting to see how he reacts once we go home.

I truly feel like the luckiest girl in the world!!!

Mother's Day Weekend!

    We had a fun filled weekend! And were all exhausted by Monday morning.
Saturday Quinten and I drove up to Philly to met Kara, Megan and the kids. Q is usually standoffish in new places. However, the fact that Kara's dog Max was there, helped to let down his guard right away.
We visited the Fire Truck Museum while in Philly. Quinn had a great time running around checking out all of the old fire trucks.

 Putting on his shorts like a big boy!

Laughing at himself when he tried to walk and realized both legs were in the same leg whole!

     Mother's Day was wonderful. Quinn and Jason surprised me with flowers, a beautiful new bracelet and a delicious egg taco breakfast! Quinn did get upset when he realized there were no more presents to open...hmm. I wonder where he ever got the idea that there are unlimited presents sounds like a certain Mama & Bopa!
     Later in the day we had our weekly Sunday Funday with the neighbors. We cooked out with Shelly and John and the boys. Lorenzo and Allison joined us for desert and Quinn experienced his first ice pop. Although he wasn't to into eating it, he loved the fact that he had what the older boys had. Here are some poses of our little super heroes with their Rocket Pops!

"Being a mother is not about what you gave up to have a child, 

but what you've gained from having."

I have so much the passed year and a half having Quinten in my life:) 

Springtime Fun!

     We have been meaning to update before the new baby arrives and things start to get even more hectic.  Quinn has had a great month and is getting smarter each day!  He talks so well and repeats everything.  He runs everywhere he goes; tries to climb up on everything and helps with several "chores" around the house. Emptying the dishwasher is one of his favorites. He cleans up after himself so good!  He loves playing with kids of all ages. He has become quite the little copy cat and keeps us laughing all of the time. 


     We are absolutely in love with our new neighborhood. With new houses going up all the time, there are constant tractors and bulldozers for Quinn to watch. He often gets his toy trucks and plays with them on the windowsill while he watches the construction workers outside. There are now about 2o kids on our street alone. 15 of them are under the age of 4 and about 10 of them are boys...craziness! Sundays have turned into neighborhood play day and we are happy to say our yard has turned into the place to be. It helps to be able to have Callie outside with everyone! We recently bought Quinn a sandbox, which seems to be a hit with several of the kids. 


Here are some pictures from this month...

Playing with his buddy John in the new sandbox.

Taking a time out to look at an airplane!


     Quinn is still has a very healthy appetite. He will still sit in his high chair for breakfast. At lunch (at school) they use a sticker chart. If the students stay in their chair the whole time they earn a sticker. We are happy to announce that positive rewards are a huge incentive with our little guy and he has earned all of his stickers so far (so all right they have only been using the chart for 4 days, but still...). Depending on our day and if we are all eating at the same time, dinner is often a carpet picnic in the living room. He does a very good job at using a spoon and feeding himself cereal and yogurt without making too much of a mess. Some of Q's favorite foods are bananas, waffles with jelly, cheese, avocados, hummus, pears, berries, yogurt and of course ketchup!

 

Enjoying some watermelon.

 This was his response when I asked him how his snack was!


     He is usually asleep by 8:30 at the latest and wakes up between 6 and 7:30. He still has a very silly personality, but does get extremely fussy when he is very hungry. At his last doctor visit (April 25) he weighed 26 lbs. Here are some more pictures of our silly monkey this month...

 Enjoying a trip to the museum!

 Watching the "tractor" across the street lift pieces of wood.

 Showing Callie the trucks.

 Being silly with sunglasses.

 I often find that my phone has lots of new pictures.

Here is the evidence that solves the "Who dun it!"

Playing with our neighbors is so much fun for the whole family but it does make it difficult to wake up and go to school the next day...Q's progression of waking up at 8am!

Hi Daddy!

But once he is awake and ready, he is begging to go to school to see his friends 

(Mia is still his best bud!)

As for Baby Boy #2...this has been quite the experience, knowing that there is a high chance of early delivery and having so many doctor visits has kept it interesting to say the least. Our most recent trip to the hospital was Friday. I started having contractions 2-3 minutes apart. Luckily the little monkey decided to hang out and "cook" a little longer and we were discharged after 5 hours of observation. Quinn doesn't fully get the idea that there is a baby coming. He knows where the baby's room is and will often play in there. When you ask him where is the baby, he tries to pull up my shirt and pat my belly. He loves other babies and is always pointing them out or waving to them.  I went for my 34 week measurements last week and the little guy weighed about 5 lbs. 12 oz. (Quinn weighed 5 lbs. 5 oz. at birth 36 weeks) so this was great news! Right now we are scheduled for a c-section delivery on June 6, but the doctors seem to think he will be a May baby!