The Barnes Family

Last Night… 4 am his lights are on and standing in the crib. A quick diaper change, a reminder that its still night time, a couple rocks in the chair and he is back in the crib. ***I lay back down around 4:15 and can’t seem to shut my mind off. Should I get up? No! Maybe?*** 4:40 am his lights are on again. This time he is crying. Another quick diaper change, (only because he had a very dirty one), yet another reminder that its still dark and dark means sleep! I rock him and lay him down. ***4:50 am! I guess I should get up, I could go work out but what if he gets up again? It’s not fair to Todd. So I lie back down and shut my eyes. I think I drift off, I’m not really sure.*** 5:10 am there are tears and cries for mommy! I go in and don’t get him out of the crib. I tell him to lie back down and go night night. ***5:15 am I have NO IDEA at this point if I went back to sleep.*** 5:40 am his lights are on again and he is crying. Once again I go in and tell him to l...

Right after Wyatt was born we said we wanted more children. We just knew that we wanted to do this all over again and have more kids. We weren’t set on a number, before Wyatt I said four and Todd said one or two. We also knew that we wanted them close together. We didn’t say how close together but when Wyatt was about 8 months old, I was ready! I think that you will face challenges with having them close or having them far apart. There are pros and cons to both and even though we never sat down to look at them and see what was best for us, we just knew we wanted at least two of them close in age. Sure I have two in diapers, two that are totally dependent on me, when I go out I have two that need to be in a stroller or shopping cart, basically all that I need to say is I have two under two! My toddler is in the throws of the terrible twos and my newborn, well she brought with her all the things that newborns do. It’s tough. That being said I wouldn’t change it for anything. No, I wo...

This is a topic that always seems to get me going. Breast is best, I agree with that statement. The bonding that takes place between mother and child during those moments is worth every. single. challenging moment breastfeeding may bring. It is utterly amazing the how connected you can feel to that sweet little person in those special moments that just the two of you share. A bottle can not give you these moments, it just can't. I find it sad when mothers don't even attempt to nurse. My heart breaks for them because they will not have some of those special moments. All of this being said, I also understand that some women can't breastfeed despite all their best efforts. It just isn't in the cards for them. I understand that we also live in a society that says, "Breast is Best." but only when you nurse in private, covered up and hidden away. Don't get me wrong, you could just whip it out in public but your going to be looked at or in my friends case you mig...

I think that 2nd birthday parties are more fun that 1st birthdays! This year we got to see the excitement on his face, hear it in his voice and could just tell that he knew it was his special day. The party was a BIG success, complete with a visit from Buzz! As soon as he saw his cake delievered he said, "happy birthday to me!" He kept saying, "birthday party!" He had a huge smile on his face when everyone started singing to him and followed Buzz everywhere!! The title to this post is a link to pictures from the party! Enjoy!

After having a baby people offer to prepare dinner for you or bring you a favorite take-out meal. We didn't have a lot of people offer this when Wyatt was born, I think people knew that we were the type to just go out no matter what and we didn't stay in the house long. With McKinley it was a different story. We had several friends bring us dinner and it was so nice to not have to worry about cooking. About a month ago a friend of mine added a new addition to her family and today, one month late, I got to meet him! It was so nice to have lunch and some adult conversation with a friend. As soon as I walked into her house, it hit me! I instantly remembered my life looking just like hers a mere 3 months ago (except she looks A LOT better than I did)!! I remember Wyatt running around my house, acting like a little tornado and me not being able to keep up, bouncing McKinley while trying to feed Wyatt and eat lunch myself. I will admit that it was most our mornings that looked l...

Wyatt at 4 months old *12lbs 12oz *25 inches long Four Months Old *13lbs 4oz *25 inches long *Size 2 diapers *Still some 0-3 but mostly 3 month stuff

Sweet baby girl is 4 months!! WOW!! I honestly can't believe it! *Sleep: We have an all nighter!!! Yes, that's right she is sleeping 11-12 hours! Every. Single. Night!!! She will go down between 7-7:30 and sleep until 7/7:30 sometimes 8 the next morning. Her naps are also starting to fall into a routine, sleep from 9-9:30, sleep from 11-12:00 then again at 1:30/2-4 sometimes longer and then she will sometimes take a late afternoon cat nap. She pretty much takes three-four naps a day. Sometimes she gives me a really long, 3 hour afternoon nap and somedays its a bunch of 30 minute naps. *More and more in love with her pacifier! *Nurses first thing in the morning and then its a 6oz bottle every three hours. She will drink about 4oz midmorning and early afternoon and then 6oz at 4 and before bed. *She has become A LOT more vocal! Talking and happy screams all the time! Not as often as Wyatt did, I am thinking she is going to be more reserved. *She is VERY co...