Maternity leave

As I sit here on the couch holding Jett while he sleeps and his big brother is upstairs asleep in his bed I can't help but reflect back on my maternity leave. From the moment we brought Jett home my recovery has been easy. It has been so easy that Brody, Jett and I have been able to be out and about enjoying each and every moment of this special time. We have spent countless days at the park, gone to story time, met up with friends, gone on hikes at the Gorge, and we traveled to Florida for two weeks. We have packed in so many adventures, and made so many memories in just this short period of time.

To my oldest Brody, you have become such a great big brother to little Jett. You surpassed everyone's expectations in how you have accepted him into our family and how you care for him. I will miss hearing you say, "good morning baby Jett," each morning. You are such a rough and tough kid that we were shocked to see how gentle (usually) you care for your brother. You hold his leg or hand ever so lightly in the stroller and often give him his paci when he cries. It is great to see you in your new role as his older brother. 

I feel like my leave was at such a perfect time in your development. While gone in Florida your vocabulary and speech in general seamed to change overnight. I love the little conversations we have. Your favorite things to say right now are:

"It's a mess"

Broke, daddy fix it"

"Brody funny"

In the midst of all this happiness there have been hard moments. I often loose my temper with you while I nurse Jett and you act out to obviously get my attention. I try very hard not to loose my temper with you and to be patient but I often fail. I hope these are not the things you remember as you grow. 

To my baby Jett,

I can't believe how much anxiety I had about you joining our family. I honestly didn't think I could love another person like I love your brother but almost instantly I realized I could and do. I have loved watching you grow over these last 9 weeks and can't believe you are already 2 months old. If I could I would go back to day one and do it all over again exactly the same.  You are a good baby and love to snuggle. Your favorite place to sleep is on my chest and I love laying down with you there. You nurse well, and sleep well at night. Naps could probably use some improvement. 😉. You are starting to smile, squeal, and I have even heard just a few little laughs. I love your and your brother's laugh.  It is probably one of the best noises I have ever heard and hearing it you can't help but smile. I can't wait to see your personality develop and see what kind of person you become. I wonder if you will be like your brother, who is just like your dad or if you will be like me or maybe someone completely different from us all. I hate that I have to leave you and go back to work when you are this small. It feels innately wrong and I wish it was different. I hope you and your brother know that as you grow up that your Dad and I work to provide the best life we can for you and that we both wish we didn't have to work and could spend more time together.   

Starting Tuesday morning I will once again leave you Brody and now you Jett in the hands of Sara. I believe she loves you just as much as we do and I trust her 100% to adequately care for you both. Jett you will soon find out what Brody already knows and that is that Sara is super fun. Possibly even more fun than your Dad and I. She is Brody's best friend and I know she will become yours as well. 

We have one and half more days together before we all start our new daily routine of me being back to work. I will miss you both so much it's physically painful. I hope and think the transition will go pretty smooth for the two of you. I love you both so much and I wish this special time wasn't over. I surely would stay home with you both each and everyday if I could. 😍

Evan's Orchard

Andrea and I met this week at Evan's Orchard to let the boys play.  We were shocked to find we wee the only ones there, and the boys had the entire play area to themselves.  We parked the strollers, strapped Jett to my chest and enjoyed the day following the boys around as they played. 

Celebration of Raymond Dickerson

Last week Dave's Grandfather Ray passed away.  He had been sick for awhile and had not been enjoying life the way he used to so although very sad I believe everyone felt a little relief by his passing.  He now is with his wife who he missed greatly since her passing a few years prior.  Coming together with family during such occasion is never easy but it was great to see those who we had not seen in some time.

At the funeral Dave had the honor of receiving the flag during the military portion of the service.  Ray in many ways acted as a father figure to Dave growing up and I know receiving the flag at his burial service meant a lot to him.  We will all miss Ray, but are glad his suffering is over and that he is now reunited with his wife in heaven. 

Mother's Day 2015

This year we celebrated Mother's Day with my Mom at her house a week late.  As usual my Mom had great food and my dad grilled out some tasty burgers.  It was great to spend time with my Mom and both of my Grandmother's on our special day. 

This Mother's day I wanted to give my Mom a very special gift.  She has been so helpful to me since the birth of Jett and I wanted to give her something that would show her my appreciation.  I decided that there was no monetary gift that would display my gratitude and that I believe she would much prefer that we spend some special time together.  This is how I came up with the idea that all the women in our upcoming Florida trip could spend a night out at a local cooking class.  Unfortunately, the cooking class has a camp that week and is unable to host our group.  Sorry Mom!!  It is the thought that counts, right.  As it stands now I am currently trying to come up with another outing for us so I can show her how much I love and appreciate her! 

Wish I would have gotten a picture of all of us Moms on Mother's Day.  

Rainy Days = Fun!!!

For most rain means you have to stay inside.  This can be cruel torture for us adults with little ones.  Luckily Dave is handy and on Saturday morning decided to run hot water to the outside spicket before the rain started.  Andrea, Brett, and the kiddos arrived shortly after the rain started and Dave and Brett decided after trying to deal with them inside that they needed to just go out and burn off some energy even though it was raining.  In efforts to make this more fun Dave and Brett went to Walmart and purchased a medium sized blowup pool that they placed under the slide of the playground.  They filled the pool up with very warm water via our new hot water access outside and the boys played in the pool and on the slide all day.  I know to the other neighbors we looked crazy but I don't care.  I think our boys are so lucky to have wild and crazy Dads like Brett and Dave that they can turn even a rainy day into a fun outdoor adventure!

Moondance 2015

Tonight after Dace got off work we hurried  to pack a cooler and head up to the amphitheater for live music. We started going last year for the local concerts, and always have a good time mingling with friends while the kids play.  The whole atmosphere reminds me of the band shell in Devou park where we played as kids. To kick off this years season we brought Jett and he enjoyed being outside while Brody danced, played with the other kids and even found a mud puddle to play in. We look forward to many more evenings at the band shell this summer.

Florida

Sara and I recently got back from a two-week vacation in Florida. Since I am on maternity leave we figured we might as well take an extended vacation while I have time off, and enjoy the Florida sun.

We drove down and back stopping in Atlanta both ways. The boys did great in the car. Brody watched movies, and jet slept most of the time. We stopped at play places, and parks to let Brody stretch his legs, and so I could feed Jett. One-stop we made on the way down Brody decided not to listen to me and got put in timeout. He was not happy about the time out and proceeded to slap me in the face. That resulted in him getting put back in his car seat and not getting a chance to play. Because of this outburst we had to get back on the road and I did not get a chance to feed Jett. Brody eventually screamed himself to sleep, and we didn't want to stop the car in fear that we would ruin his nap. In order to get Jett fed I had to pump a bottle while driving and Sarah fed it to him in his car seat.  We joked that if I had gotten pulled over we would've had quite the story to tell or show ;). 

Once we were in Florida we played on the beach, went to the pool, went on many hikes, went to the mall, rode the beep beep, Brody rode his bike, and we overall just had a blast doing everything and anything.  Jett did great on the beach, we kept him in the shade with a beach tent, and he wore his uspf bathing suit.  Brody loved playing in the ocean, and digging holes in the sand.  We tried to build sandcastle's, but Brody mostly enjoyed knocking them down.  Brody spent hours running in and out of the waves as they came up on the beach.
For lunch every day that we spent at the pool or the beach, Brody got pizza and ice cream which were obviously a huge hit.  One day on the pavilion deck at lunch he even met a girl he was quite smitten with. She was quite a bit older than him, probably 20 or 21, but that didn't stop Brody from bashfully talking to her.  She didn't quite understand his toddler language, so I spent most of their conversation translating for her. She especially thought it was funny when Brody asked her if she pooped in the potty.  

Luckily for us, my mom flew down to meet us for the first weekend we're there. We enjoyed our first day at the pool with her, and going on a hike in the nature preserve the second day. Unfortunately though our fun was cut short when my van decided to have maintenance issues. The serpentine belt broke due to the mechanic tightening it too tight before we left when he fixed the timing belt. Overall this whole issue resulted in two tows, us getting stranded at the fire station, and us having to get a rental car for two days. It was quite the fiasco, but luckily my mom was there to help deal with the van and all its issues. 

We visited Saint Augustine twice, where we moseyed around all the shops watched the trolleys and choo-choo trains and visited the fort.  One weekend was especially special for Brody because on Saturday Sarah took him on a Sarah and Brody date to the touch a truck event in Saint Augustine. They got to sit on a helicopter, an ambulance, a school bus, a tractor, and various other trucks and farm equipment.  Brody learned all about waiting in lines and taking turns. He was very patient and according to Sarah a very good boy.  While there he got a yellow fireman's hat of which he fell in love with, and a helicopter shirt that is three sizes too big but now his favorite shirt to wear night night.  The next day Brody and I visited the Jacksonville zoo together while Sarah kept Jett. We rode the choo-choo train three times, the Merry go round seven and saw all sorts of animals.  I believe seeing the elephants while on the choo-choo was Brody's favorite part.  We also played at the. Zoo park, and indulged on ice cream.  It was so nice to have some one on one time with Brody and remember how it was when it was just him and I. I think Brody really enjoyed the Mommy and Brody time we had as well. At one point while riding the merry-go-round he looked at me and smiled and wrapped his arms around my neck and gave me the biggest hug. It warmed my heart so much, and I was glad to see he was having such a good time.  

Sarah and I also enjoyed our time together once the boys went to sleep. We had lots of time to talk, and get to know each other better. I can honestly say that in the two weeks we spent together I don't believe either one of us ever got on each others nerves. We are all very blessed to have her in our lives. Once the boys would go to bed we would clean up a little, crack open a beer and watch a few episodes of nurse Jackie. It was always a nice way to relax after we got the boys down for bed. Sarah even took Jett a few nights so I could get some much-needed sleep.  Sarah also spent many mornings with Brody on the beach, while Jett and I rested a little longer.  

Overall, the trip was a success. Both boys behaved wonderfully most of the time, and Sarah and I had a great time getting to do things we don't get to do here at home. As my maternity leave approaches its end I wish I could start over and go back to Florida. We had such a carefree wonderful time making memories with Brody and new baby Jett. 

Pictures coming soon!