Give It A Shot

After months of being on blogging hiatus, I'm going to give it a shot now that I have my new tablet. With baby Andrew on the verge of cruising and trying to homeschool Sean and keep him busy, finding time to sit in front of my PC to blog, has been near impossible.

So here goes... Christmas is just days away and I still have TONS of wrapping to do. It's amazing how different this year will be. First of all having two children, but also how differently Michael and I have treated buying stuff for our second child.

With Sean, you could hardly see him in the see of presents and after the second gift he was done tearing paper off the gifts. We only bought a couple for Andrew knowing better this time around. Instead I'm putting more effort into the wrapping, since that is likely going to be the source of Andrew's joy and entertainment. I'm going to be putting big shiney bows on everything for him to play with.

Sean has gotten to an age where is gifts are more pricey so we don't have to worry about the mountain anymore.

You Must Have So Much Time On Your Hands!

I don't know why people who work think stay at home moms have SO much time on their hands. I think I've worked harder and longer hours in the last 9 months than in the last 15 years at a paying job.

Now granted I am homeschooling my oldest son and I have a 9 month old baby. I am literally working 24/7! I get up most mornings between 6-7am and start the Multitasking Olympics of getting myself and my two boys up, fed and dressed. By 9am the three of us are dressed, fed, and ready to start the day... I've probably done the dishes, some laundry, picked up stuff around the house, etc. Then we start school. Do you have any idea the under taking teaching your own child while caring for a baby is? One word... INSANE!

So as midnight quickly approaches... I debate whether to do more laundry or do absolutely nothing on the couch :s

31st Fort Worth International Taekwondo Championship

Sean competed for the first time since he was 5 and new to Taekwondo. He sparred against a national champion in his division that's been competing for the last 2 years, and his parents are a sparring and forms coach. When the first round ended Sean was down 1-5, and finished the second round 6-11. He managed to gain 5 more points and walked away with 3rd place.

We are SO proud of him. He will be competing alot next year because he wants to go to Nationals in the summer, which will be held in Dallas for the first time. His goal is to come home with a gold medal. He will have to train hard, because next year he will likely be competing as a red belt.

Update on Andrew

Well it's been 2-1/2 months since I've blogged, but if you're following me on Facebook you get a glimpse of day to day life around here. Andrew is sitting up and he's on the verge of crawling. Boy is life going to change when that happens. He's eating 3 jars of food a day and still pretty much sleeping through the night. Here is a picture of the bundle of cuteness from today...

Plastic Bag Holders

My friend Kimberly shared this post and thought it was a brilliant idea. Now I have something to do with all those empty wet wipes containers, instead of just throwing them in the recycle bin.

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/2011/07/summer-social-guest-project-make_21.html?m=1

LOVE This Picture

I LOVE this picture of Andrew. He has the prettiest eyes. I have no idea how both my boys ended up with LONG lashes. I'm sure if I had girls they wouldn't be as long as these are.

Beating the Heat in Texas

The past couple of years we've been getting season passes to our local water park and every weekend we'd spend the day there so Sean could swim and play. Since this year we have Andrew and he's too young to put in the water and it's too hot to even hang out in the shade we decided to get what my husband calls a "white trash" pool. It's been great having it, because Sean can swim whenever and because it's smaller than an in ground pool would be the sun heats it up so it feels like a warm bath... perfect for Andrew.

Andrew's First Solid Meal

It's hard to believe Andrew is old enough to start trying solid foods. I'm doing Super Baby Food again, just like with Sean. So what's Andrew's first food... avocados. We tried it a couple weeks ago and I don't think he's quite ready. He's still doing alot of tongue thrusting so I'll try again in a week.

Sleep Schedule

Day 6 of "sleep training" and Andrew figured it out after the first day. It's been SO much easier getting things done and planned around here. The best part has been that he's not terribly rigid about the schedule so a little deviation doesn't ruin the whole day, which is great if we want to do something.

Family Schedule

There is something to be said about having your family (at least the kiddos) on a schedule. Having worked for years in corporate America and being used to schedules and deadlines it helps me manage... well, LIFE. Now that I'm staying home and my "job" is solely to run this household and raise two boys, I've found putting together a schedule to be the key to my sanity.


Andrew has hit the 4 month mark and it is now physiologically appropriate to start sleep training to get him, Sean and myself on a schedule. So the next three weeks will be "lock down" around here, trying NOT to deviate from the schedule.


Day 1 (yesterday) - required the dreaded {Crying It Out} for Andrew to get on a nap schedule. I found it much easier to deal with for nap time since it was only for a 2 hour period. I used the same methodology as night time {Crying It Out}. However, after the nap time window was over, I would wake Andrew up and keep him up til the next scheduled nap time.


The morning nap was horrible. He slept for about 25-30 minutes and cried the remaining hour and a half. When the time was up, I picked him up, went through the usual "get ready for the day" routine and kept him up. I wanted him to be tired for nap time number 2 in the afternoon.


Afternoon nap went a little better. He slept for the first 30 minutes, cried for about an hour and finally put himself back to sleep. Again when the nap time window was over, I woke him up and we did stuff to keep him up.


By Andrew's usual bedtime routine he was exhausted. Once we hit the recliner for his before bed feeding he was ready. There wasn't a peep out of him when I put him in his bed. Drum roll please... he slept for SEVEN straight hours before waking up, ate, and went back to bed for another FOUR hours!!!

Day 2 - Andrew caught on quick... I got up at 6:30am to get Andrew fed and myself showered and ready. Morning nap was a family nap time because everyone in the house was feeling a little under the weather. Andrew from allergies and his 4 month shots yesterday. Sean from his allergies. Daddy from a bad sunburn and working late. Mommy from her allergies. Needless to say this was an easy nap time for Andrew, because he's going to be that kid that says "Oh, you're sleeping. Okay, I'll lay down and sleep with you."

I was worried that family nap with Andrew would set us back, but NOPE... this afternoon he cried for FIVE minutes and went to sleep. If he woke up he would scream, but he was only partially awake and was upset because he lost his binky. Since he's still too young to look for it, grab it and put it back in his mouth I have to help out a little with that. His other comfort item has turned out to be the burp clothes (cloth diapers) that I use when I nurse him (yes, we've developed another child with Wubbies - Sean's were white washcloths).

Even though it's only the second day, the great thing I've found about doing the nap time sleep training first is it allows me time to get chores done and start spending more time with Sean again. With Sean starting homeschooling at the end of the month it will be important to have both of them on a schedule.

Going this route for sleep training has kept me from feeling like a horrible mom (and being a sleep deprived one), since I know the crying is only for a fixed amount of time. Hopefully by the end of the week I can count this as a victory :)

Homemade Instant Oatmeal

This weekend Sean wanted oatmeal for breakfast, but I was still sleeping. I heard Michael and Sean trying to find instant oatmeal and Michael told Sean that whenever he tries to make the old fashioned Quaker stuff he messes it up. So viola... in an effort to make it easier for Michael (yes, he's getting spoiled now that I'm a SAHM) and to teach Sean to make it himself, I premade containers. These handy 1/2c Rubbermaid containers (which were things I used when I made Sean's homemade baby foods years ago) were perfect. I explained to Sean all he had to do was get a bowl, empty the contents into it and fill the small container twice with water. He knows how to use the microwave (thanks to St. James Montessori), so he just pops it in himself for 2-1/2 minutes and it's done!! I even added the amount of sugar I normally add for Sean so he doesn't sugar it himself. This is a great way to get your kiddo to eat a healthy breakfast and teach them some independence.

Summer Reading Programs - DFW Mama DFW Mama

This is a post from one of my friends on Summer Reading Programs for your little ones. It's easy to slack off during the summer and this is a great way to keep your kiddos engaged in learning.

Summer Reading Programs - DFW Mama DFW Mama

Manual Labor - Fixing The Fence

Due to the series of storms that blew through the DFW area a section of our fence was blown down. As a result Michael decided to replace several of the posts on the 100+ feet section of the fence. Michael spent about 8 hours working on it with the help of Aaron (family friend), Papa, and of coarse Sean. Helping with home improvement projects has become one of Sean's favorite things to do with his dad. Every project Michael starts, Sean will ask every day if they are going to work some more on it. The flower bed retaining wall is completed and I just need to get pictures of the great job the boys did. Now we just need to fill it with soil and plants.

More Eczema Drama

(Andrew's eczema)

Even though Andrew's eczema cleared up significantly after figuring out it was caused by the old bassinet mattress, I was still concerned about the raw broken skin behind his knees. I have been holding off using the antibiotic the pediatrician gave me, but I decided to give it to him the beginning of the weekend. Since I'm not a big medicine person, I had completely forgotten to give it to him the 3x per day as prescribed. So I gave the second dose on Sunday morning with the intention of setting reminders on my cell phone so I wouldn't forget. Later that afternoon when I was changing his clothes I noticed he was broken out all over his torso and as the day went on it was all over him. I've concluded that Andrew is allergic to Penicillin. Thank God I didn't give him another dose. Who knows what kind of reaction he would have had. And wouldn't you know... his skin cleared up again after 24 hours.

Eczema Mystery Solved!!!

Poor Andrew has been suffering from some pretty bad eczema the last couple months. With the Texas heat coming in full force it's done nothing to help the situation. He started to develop breaks in the skin behind his knees because of the moisturizer we have to keep applying and sweating from the heat.

Out of concern he would contract a secondary infection I took him to his pediatrician yesterday. True to form the doctor wanted to give him oral antibiotics to treat him in case he has a secondary infection (uuuuuu... not giving that to him if he can't confirm there's an infection). He also gave us a steroid cream. I'm not fond of medications, especially steroids for infants/children. However, I was willing to use it til it improved then use an over the counter cream to finish it off. This was all going to be temporary until I figured out the what was causing the reaction.

When I got home from the doctor I had to feed Andrew and I started going through every allergen he could come in contact with. We already use free and clear detergent for the family and I cut dairy from my diet. I was going to do wheat next. As Andrew nursed I was looking at him trying to figure out what could cause it ALL over his body. He wasn't congested so it couldn't be triggered by "hay fever". Then it hit me... maybe DUST MITES!!! We keep our mattress in one of those expensive mattress covers because of Sean's allergies. It was then that I realized we NEVER bought a new mattress for the bassinet, because Sean's was still in it and he only used it for 6 months. However, I realized it had been stored in the bassinet in our attic for the last few years. Who knows what the condition of the inner material. It could be breaking down or be full of dust mites. So off to the store I went to buy a new mattress. When I got home just comparing the appearance of the new to the old was obvious.

By the time I got home it was time for bath and bedtime. So I reluctantly applied the steroid cream behind his knees and put him to bed on his new mattress and clean sheets. This morning when he woke up and I was changing his diaper I checked out his skin. What an improvement!!! I sat down to nurse him and like I do countless times per day I just gazed down at him adoringly. Then I started to check his face and then noticed that the skin behind his ears weren't irritated and peeling from his eczema. I thought, wow that cream really... WAIT!!! I was told I couldn't use it on his face. So if I didn't put it on his face, that means it improved because I got rid of the old mattress.

Finally Andrew is on the mend and he's getting his beautiful baby soft skin!!! As for the steroid cream... I'll keep it around IF I need it, but for now it's put away hopefully to never be used again.

First Lost Tooth

A couple weeks ago when Sean was eating he complained that his teeth hurt. That's when we discovered he finally had a loose tooth. Over these past few days he kept asking if we wanted to see it and he would show us how it was getting more loose. I had been helping him brush his teeth for the last week because he hadn't been brushing his front teeth well (he had hurt his the area around his tooth a couple times). This morning I was brushing his teeth and he yelled "Ow!!" He went to rinse his mouth out and there was blood. We told him to pull the tooth out because it was ready, but he refused. I got a washcloth and told him that I was going to soak up the blood in his mouth, because it would make him sick to his stomach. The first couple times he'd barely let me touch his tooth. Then I finally convinced him that I just needed to hold some pressure on it to stop the bleeding. I had a good hold of it, so when he jerked away the last time I had his tooth, but he didn't realize it yet. Then Michael told him to look in the mirror. Sean turned to me and asked if I had it and I slowly opened the washcloth. So tonight Sean will get his first visit from the tooth fairy.

Catching Up - Andrew's First Easter

We celebrated Easter at Nana & Papa's house like we do every year. The bigger kids hunted 100's of eggs in the backyard. Hard to believe next year Andrew will be among them.

Couponing

In an effort to save as much money as possible, my new obsession has become couponing. Thanks to the show Extreme Couponing (on TLC Wednesdays at 8pm CST) I've learned a few things on getting the most bag for my buck. I highly recommend checking out it. Here is a website for one of the ladies featured in the show:
The Krazy Coupon Lady
She breaks it down for you on her site and gives ALOT of resources. I've gotten a few of my friends hooked on the show and starting the couponing craze!!

I was so excited yesterday that I got a tub of Pampers baby wipes for $1.50 at Albertsons. I also scored FREE Ivory soap because of a sale and my coupons. FREE is good!!!

I told Michael that any money that was left over from the grocery budget at the end of the month because of my couponing was going into our savings. My GOAL... to only use $100 of our allotted budget every month. I'm trying to get THAT good at the couponing. Who couldn't use more money in their savings account these days?

AirExpo 2011

Michael took Sean to the air show in Fort Worth Sunday. Right before they were getting ready to leave I suggested to Sean that he wear his pilot costume from Halloween. He looks like he belongs in the chopper!! He had a really good time and got the opportunity to see the Blue Angels fly. I wish I could have been there to share that with him. The air shows bring back such great memories from my childhood.

Working Towards Blue Belt

Today Sean earned his black tape to work towards testing for his blue belt in July. It's hard to believe he's been doing this for two and a half years. He only has 4 belt ranks to achieve before starting his training for his black belt.

Andrew Update

I took Andrew in to have his rash checked out. What started out as baby acne on his cheeks started getting everywhere, so I was suspecting a heat rash or eczema. The nurse practitioner thinks it's either eczema that's not presenting in the usual places or dermatitis. Either way no baby washes for Andrew... Cetaphil and Aquaphor only. When the tech was trying to Andrew's vitals, he wanted to get a rectal temperature to make sure that it wasn't something viral. I stripped Andrew down and was in the process of wiping his bottom up before the dreaded rectal temperature was taken. The tech didn't work fast enough and Andrew not only peed everywhere (completely soaking the exam table), but he pooped too. The only thing Andrew didn't do was spit up all over the tech. FYI - Andrew now weighs 10lbs 7.5oz

Budda Bellies

Michael and I are trying to duplicate some of our favorite photos of Sean with Andrew. We're actually going to have to do this one again because Sean is actually 2 months older in his photo, but you can still see ALOT of similarities in the boys.

Reusable Lunch Box Items

I love seeing all the nifty children's items in the parenting and kids magazines. Right now I've been on a quest for reusable items for my son's lunch and snack boxes. Not only to be earth-friendly, but pocketbook friendly too. Those darn plastic storage bags get SO expensive to just throw away and they really aren't an item you can wash and reuse (despite what some of our moms used to do or think... you can't get them thoroughly clean). So here are some items I've seen/found:

Light My Fire Spork Little

These are BPA free plastic utensils with safety in mind for your little ones. I'm sure there are TONS of options now on the market. This is nice because you don't need separate forks and spoons.Picnic Pouches

If you can sew you can probably make these yourself.

They're like the plastic sandwich bags you fold closed, just out of fabric.

People Towels

Cloth napkins for kids... again if you can sew you could probably make your own. This site has some really cute patterns.

Of coarse there's my all time favorite Thermos... you can find all kinds of stainless steel lunch containers. FYI, just make sure your kids know you can't put them in the microwave. My son managed to ruin a couple of the BPA free plastic ones (I didn't know either that the plastic ones couldn't go in there), but now it gives me an excuse to get the stainless ones (which are my preference).

Dallas Arboretum

Sunday we went to the Arboretum with our friends to take pictures. It was a little warmer than I would have liked (blame it on my post partum hormones) and the wind was kind of crazy. Despite the weather we still had a good time and got some great pictures. The kids were sure tired by the time we got home.

Tummy Time With Andrew

Since bringing Andrew home he's managed to get himself on a schedule. Aside from feeling complete blessed that he gets up only once a night to eat, after his morning feeding he likes to stay up for 2 hours before he eats again and goes down for a nap. We started tummy time several days ago and he'll last about 10 minutes. This was from today. Amazing how quickly a baby develops the strength in their muscles!!

FYI - at his 2 week check up he was 8lbs 13oz and 21" long... he's growing like a weed.

2 Weeks Old

It feels like I just left the hospital, but today Andrew is 2 weeks old...

His umbilical cord fell off at some point during the night, his circ is healed {Thank God, it was making him miserable when he'd pee... one of the few times you'd actually here him cry}, and today was his first day of tummy time.

He's changed SO much in 2 weeks! It really does go by fast :(

Shutterfly Albums Added

I've added Shutterfly Albums in the side bar for Sean and Andrew. It's probably the best way I've found to share photos without having to deal with rewriting HTML's when I add or change the albums. Since I started one for Andrew I went back and started one for Sean. Maybe with time I'll add some previous pictures of Sean. Probably as Andrew hits certain milestones I'll upload pictures of when Sean hit them for a trip down memory lane :)

Dinosaur (or Dragon) Tails

My BFF sent me this link she saw to some cute Dinosaur (or Dragon) tails for boys dress up. I know when Sean was smaller he was a dragon two Halloweens in a row. Andrew already has a dragon costume for his first Halloween. I imagine I'll be make a couple of these for the boys :)

You can find Jessica's How-To Instructions at Tatertots & Jello or Running With Scissors

Absolutely Adorable

I LOVE this picture of Andrew. We had his pictures taken at Picture People in Buy Buy Baby today. We had Sean's done when he was 8 days old and Michael wanted to do the same with Andrew. It's hard to get infant pictures with their eyes open and we got REALLY lucky for this shot.

Adjusting To A Baby In The House

I may be jinxing myself blogging about this, but I'm going to enjoying while I can {and certainly share that joy}. Andrew is such a GOOD baby. When you have a newborn and decide to nurse you're told to nurse them every 2-3 hours. A couple of times while we were in the hospital due to pediatrician rounds and such, Andrew had gone 6 hours between feedings {needless to say, not very comfortable for mommy}. Day/Night 1 at home I continued the 2-3 hour feedings, however, when I got a little preoccupied prior to one of the feedings noticed Andrew happily went 4 hours between feedings. Day/Night 2 & 3... I decided to wake Andrew up every 2-3 hours to feed during the day and left him alone for the night to see what he would do... viola!!! I've only gotten up once both nights. His first feeding of the morning he eats REALLY well because of the long stretch then he stays up and alert for about 30 minutes {very quietly I might add} and settles into his every 2-3 hour routine.

Brotherly Love

To say Sean loves his brother would be an understatement. Sean is SO in love with his baby brother I can't even express it in words. It is the sweetest thing to Sean cuddle his baby brother and be so protective. This morning Sean didn't want to get out of bed, instead he asked me if I could turn on some cartoons and if he could hold his brother. Since spring break started for Sean today, he is leisurely laying in bed right now with his daddy, while he cuddles his baby brother.

Whole Lot Of Cooking Go On...

It's been a day of grocery shopping with my mom and my brother, Chris. Went to Hong Kong Market, Central Market and Target to load up on groceries. Let the cooking frenzy begin!! (Even Sean is in on the action)

Andrew Adjusting To Home

I don't know if it's the fact we're 7 years older or this is baby number two or maybe Andrew's just a REALLY good baby. Whatever the reason this time around seems to be alot easier. I know we're only a few days into it, but he's been just an absolute dream. Sean absolutely adores his baby brother (just like his daddy, who you will have to practically fight to be able to hold Andrew). I'm still soaking in the fact I now how two adorable boys.

Sean's Green Belt Black Stripe Ceremony

Sean's Belt Ceremony was last night and he officially received his next belt rank - Green Belt Black Stripe. Now Sean will be working towards his Blue Belt. Just four more belts to earn/achieve before his Black Belt.

We are SO proud of Sean!!!

Mr. Aaron & Sean

Sean's Green Belt Black Stripe Test

Sean tested for his green belt black stripe Saturday. Since I was in the hospital with our newest family member, Andrew, this is the first test I didn't get to see. Michael took plenty of pictures, but this one was most impressive to me. He has gotten so good at his kicks over the last 2 years. I can't wait to see how he continues to improve as he approaches his black belt.

Andrew's Coming Today

Glad I prepared last night... woke up a few times and had contractions, but I was able to go back to sleep. Woke up this morning around 5am contracting. In my usual OCD fashion of wanting to be prepared I figured I'd go ahead and take a shower (just in case) and go about my morning. Finished up Sean's laundry so Michael would have all of Sean's uniforms for school and Tae Kwon Do set out. Made Sean's lunch for school and finished packing my bag.

Once everyone left for school and work decided to buy Burlesque on pay per view and start timing my contractions (found a cool app on my Android phone to do it)... every 6-8 minutes for 2 hours!!! Finally decided to call the doctor's office. Fortunately the on call doctor saw no reason to keep me pregnant for a couple more days and now I'm waiting for Michael to come get me so we can see Andrew today :)

Counting Down to Andrew...

Three more days... I can't believe he is almost here. Had my last OB appointment today and I must be contracting and not feeling it because I'm dialated to 1cm. Nothing to write home about... however, it's making me wonder if all the pressure I think is Andrew pressing out against me are really contractions. Tonight before dinner I was having some of those that were a bit more uncomfortable, but they were only 7-10 minutes apart for about an hour and went away. Of coarse I have NO idea if I'm really contracting since I've been dealing with round ligament and sciatic pain for the last 3-4 months.

In either case he's coming Monday... worse case I go into labor or my water breaks and he shows up sooner. Washing my laundry tonight, just in case ;)

More Minky Blankets for Andrew

I think Baby Andrew is going to be set on blankets... I still have 2 more to finish :)

Sean's Rock & Roll Quilt

Since I was making a quilt for Baby Andrew and Sean has since outgrown his baby quilt I made him a new one with some of his favorite things. Sean was VERY excited to have a new quilt and couldn't wait to use it.

More Minky Receiving Blanket Photos

Not all my family and friends "subscribe" to the cult addiction called Facebook, so I thought I would post the pictures of Andrew's minky blankets.

I'm going to try to finish a few more and Sean's quilt today.

Andrew's Quilt Is Officially Done

I finished Andrew's quilt today and I'm pretty pleased with how it came out. It's bigger than a standard crib quilt which is nice because he can use it well into his toddler years.

Sean's Rock Star quilt top is finished and I have the batting and backing material for it. I will hopefully finish it this weekend so he has a new quilt. He outgrew his baby quilt LONG ago, since it was a much smaller size.

Since I've been on a sewing kick I made some minky blankets, burp cloths, and I'm working on some diaper covers. NO, I'm not doing cloth diapers. However, during the Texas heat when Sean was a baby he wandered around in a t-shirt and diaper alot, so I thought I'd make some cool diaper covers (similar to bloomers) that were cool and funky for boys. We'll see how those turn out :)

New Blog Title

Finally got around to editing my blog title. I can't change the actual blog address, but at least the title is updated. Hard to believe I'll have to start blogging for two silly boys.

Black Tape!!

Tonight Sean earned his last and usually the hardest tape so he can test on March 5th. He got his black tape for his forms and advancing techniques. I didn't even realize he was ready to test for it. Normally Sean gets it the week before the test... apparently he's been working really hard in class and earned it a week earlier than usual. We're SO proud of him. When he was getting the tape I caught him peeking over his shoulder at me to see if I was watching. He was VERY proud of himself too.

Sean's belt test will be Saturday March 5th. I will let y'all know the time, because I think for once his test isn't at the crack of dawn so we can all sleep in a little later :)

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Sean and I are avid chocolate lovers... so when Central Market mentioned their Chocolate Festival we HAD to go see all the chocolate goodness. Sean sampled everything they had available from Ghirardelli hot chocolate to steak with a chocolate bbq sauce. What chocolate goodies did we leave with: Ghirardelli hot chocolate, dark chocolate peanut butter, and finally strawberries (the expensive pretty kind) and chocolate chips to make chocolate covered strawberries. This was my first time making them so I'm excited about how pretty they came out. Of coarse Sean was eyeballing them and would have eaten them all if I'd let him.

Finally A Name...

After MONTHS of looking up names and tossing names back and forth we FINALLY have the baby's name... Andrew Gregory Simmons. It is made up of his three grandfathers' names. Andrew from my dad, Gregory from Michael's stepdad, and obviously the Simmons name from Michael's biological dad.

Michael had considered his biological father's name, however, decided on Papa's (Greg) name since he is the grandfather that both our boys will grow up knowing.

While I'm glad to finally have a name picked out... I'm even happier that Michael picked something that is SO meaningful. I know the name will mean alot to both our fathers. Since I'm also big on knowing the meaning of names, so I looked it up.
Andrew - is Greek for strong, courageous & Gregory - is Greek for watchful, vigilant

I love that he will have such a meaningful name, just like Sean.

Dressing Alike

Sean is SO excited about being a big brother. He's even told me that he wants his brother to dress like him. Normally I wouldn't do something like that unless it was for pictures, but since it was his request I've been trying to keep a look out for places that have matching clothes. Kind of hard since Sean is in 7-8 and his new brother will be a newborn. However, yesterday I was able to find some cute stuff at Carter's of all places.

I thought these would be cute for the day the baby is delivered.

Here are a few other shirts I got for them: