caleb communication

caleb is getting a little bit more communicative now. well, his main form of communication is still grunting and making that most irritating nagging sound, but he does know a few words. "ball," "light," "key," "please" are the real words he knows. what he understands is amazing...he can't verbalize, but when we tell him to do or get something, he totally understands us now. can't wait until he starts talking more, but i'm sure that once he starts talking, i'll want him to be quiet...lol.

almost a kitchen

finally, our kitchen is beginning to look like a kitchen again. i'm getting anxious for it to be done cuz trying to feed a family with no kitchen is not an easy feat. eating out, while tasty, just isn't that healthy. i mean, i'm not the world's healthiest cook, but at least i know what's going in there. i cannot wait until it's done and i have a functional sink again cuz even if the stove has been in working condition, you can't really cook much without having a pile of dishes...and doing a pile of dishes in the freakin' little bathroom sink is not gonna happen.

i think my neighbors are getting irritated with the noise and stuff from them working. sheez, my bad. i didn't know what to expect, really. guess i'll get them a little apology gift for their inconvenience. that's the shitty part about living in a townhouse/condo thingy.

please, please, please...let this be done soon!!!!

bipolar

my son is freakin' bipolar. i wonder where he gets it from...

renovations

today they REALLY started our renovations...and they seemed to run into a problem with everything!!! first, because our original cabinets were the original originals...they were built to fit into the space provided. because of cost and time, we decided to buy the pre-made cabinets that were in stock at lowe's...now the problem, of course, is that these pre-made sizes don't fit perfectly into the space we have, so they have to figure out how to improvise. see, kids, math really is important...

the kids were pretty good with all the stuff going on. granted, it was loud, and it woke both of them from naps, but beyond that it was okay. caleb is a scaredy cat anyways, so he would not go near the loud noises.

the hardest part was when we didn't have access to the toilet and then the limited access to the refrigerator. we are sink-less right now, so we're washing bottles in the bathroom sink and using paper plates and the millions (i not lying, millions...) of saved plastic utensils that my mom kept organized in a big ziploc bag. lol. who knew they would come in handy?? i bet you she's the only one in the world that saves mcflurry spoons!!!

anyways, hoping that this is all done by the end of the week. we will also be getting a new laundry center on friday...we finally picked one out and made the big purchase...since my mom threw the big hint and gave me the ad for the sears outlet sale...lol.

so basically we are gonna have some nice new stuff finally which might make living here a little less painful since we have no money to move out...

two months!

today was brynna's two month check up...which means, SHOTS!!! she got three shots and one oral vaccine. i've always been super impressed with the nurse's ability to quickly dole out the kids' shots. caleb usually would give a big yelp and continued yells until she was done and he was back in my arm. same thing with brynna, except that she's a kicker! she kicked one of the needles off the table, and maybe because of her kicking, one of her shots bled a lot. i don't remember caleb's shots ever bleeding before, but hers bled so much that i think even the nurse was a little bit scared. it stopped quickly, though, and besides getting some blood on her onesie, i don't think there was any real damage done.

brynna's two month stats...
11 lbs 12 ozs
23.5 in
15 in head

caleb was 11 lbs 8 ozs at ONE month...lol!

she's growing steadily, though...about two pounds in a month and an inch in height. she's 75th percentile for height and weight, 25th for head size...you'd think with all that hair my baby's head would be bigger, but it's not.

she, like her brother, proceeded to pass out hard after getting the shots. she's been sleeping a lot today but will wake up occasionally as though she's in pain. i gave her tylenol once and will probably give her a little bit more when she wakes up to eat again.

you know those commercials that they've had recently...where the peeps are asking millions of questions about random stuff, but then when they go to the doctor they don't have any questions at all? well, that's what i felt like today at the doctor. he asks if i have any questions and i'm stumped...like i should be asking stuff but i really don't know what! i remember with caleb we asked a lot of questions...guess i ran out of things to ask this time around!

anyways, i'm hoping for good sleeps tonight. she did pretty good last night except that she woke up at 300 a.m. to eat, got put down at 330, then was up again at 415ish and 600...that sucks. tomorrow, fingers crossed, actual work begins in our kitchen...let's hope it all goes well!!!!!

sleeps, grouchies, reading

after a few nights of having a wonderfully long sleep for her first sleep of the night, brynna's now doing about three hours between feedings at night. during the day she still eats pretty much every two hours. i have to go back and look at what kind of sleep and feedings caleb was doing around this time. of course, i have to also remember that caleb was about the size of a three month old at two months, so that makes a difference too. brynna's picking up weight and she just looks incredibly long...especially in her little bassinet...gotta figure out the bed thing once the kitchen is done...if it's ever done...lol.

i'm on my second pack of bcp after not being on bcp for a looong time. what i remember most from being on them before was the "yellow pills". i knew, like clockwork, that the crazy me (well, crazier than the usual me) would emerge when i was on the yellow pills. the pills i'm on now are all same color except for the last week, though, so i'm not really sure when the spike or change in hormones is...all i know is that i'm on the last week before the placebo ones, so i'm thinking this is the crazy week. actually, i think every weekend is the crazy time...i wait all week for the days when dave won't have to work, then when the weekend comes he drives me mento...lol.

finally started reading again and decided to get some teen lit since i haven't been keeping up with what the kids are reading...i better get back into it so i can call them out when they fake read for their assignments. read a few sarah dessen books...not bad, but it bothers me that all the kids are drinking and smoking...i mean, i guess it's realistic, but still...and this last one, someone like you, made teen pregnancy seem way too easy. started a new harlan coben one too...only a few chapters in but like with all his books, i'm sure i'm gonna love it and finish it way too fast. guess i'll make a trip to the library every week from now on...even if i think library books are gross and dirty, for the sake of our wallets i'll read them...the sucky part is that most of them are hardcover, which is harder to read in bed and maneuver when you're trying to read and feed or bounce at the same time...

one of my favorite times of the day is putting caleb to sleep...lol. not cuz then he's imprisoned in his crib, but because i love reading to him, then cuddling him before putting him into bed. he's not a big cuddler, but i am, and i'm going to force him to cuddle me forever...

brynna did her longest, cutest set of smiling today...at gramma, of course! she has smiled way more for gramma than for me...oh well! my two kids will be gramma's kids...it's all good. lol.

totally off topic, but dang, nicole scherzinger is damn hot. she makes my top five, guarantee. jennifer lopez, kim kardashian, nicole scherzinger...hmm, i dunno who the other two are...

kitchen and sleeps

kitchen info...

ha...we survived kitchen packing. now i'm patiently (impatiently) awaiting the arrival of the wrecking crew to get this renovation done. they gotta fix the drywall in the bathroom (we've been living with a 4x4 foot hole in the wall for about two weeks now) and then take out all the cabinets and counters and the sink and rangehood in the kitchen and replace them. they keep saying two days, which i know in renovation land (sheez, i watch hgtv!) means probably more like a week. they promised that we would have access to our kitchen and bathroom during the entire process so we'll see. all i know is that if it means we gotta eat some take out, i'm not going to get all futless about the cost cuz it'll be worth it in the end.

we have a sh**load of stuff packed away, and a whole lotta stuff went to goodwill and the rubbish can too. i found some pretty pyrex bakeware tucked away which will be perfect for trying out new mac and cheese and other casserole recipes once this is done. besides that, no treasures found, just a lot of miscellaneous crap.

sleeps info...

in true potogee fashion, brynna had her best sleeps over the weekend, when i would have actually not had to feel bad about waking dave up to help me. she took a long sleep until about 1 a.m., then woke up, ate, and went right back to sleep again. last night she did okay except at her 330ish feeding...she was gassy or something and didn't want to be put down. between 330 and 515 she drank 5 oz of milk and finally went down after that extra ounce.

caleb, on the other hand, did not have good sleeps. i think it's his teeth that are coming out that are bothering him, but who knows. we did give him tylenol before bed last night and he seemed to do better. the other two nights he would get up screaming and stay up for a few hours...my mom tried to put him in bed with her but since it's a twin sized bed he didn't have enough room to move around and when she asked him if he wanted to go back in his crib he said yes! lol.

brynna's been a little punk the past couple nights. disaster night #1 she decided she didn't want to sleep after her 4 a.m. feeding...this, after waking up every 2 hours or so and not wanting to drink more than 2 ounces before falling asleep and hungrily awakening again. last night, she was refusing to go down...every time we'd get her to sleep and try to put her down, she'd start screaming again...let me tell you, after a few times of this, you're seriously pissed off. after finally going down at about 1015, she wakes up at 1 a.m., eats some and then proceeds to get pissed off, not want to eat, not want to be put down, etc. she finally takes a crap and eats again and i get to go back to sleep after about TWO hours. believe me, i was not a happy camper. today she's been throwing fits off and on...grrrr.

it's been a long week...and it's gonna be a short weekend....and we gotta pack up our entire kitchen...yay.

i'm so glad i kept this blog to document caleb's development, cuz now it's cool to go back and see where he was at and compare it to where brynna's at. i know, i know, not supposed to compare your kids, but it's inevitable.

so here's some differences i noticed...

caleb was a hell of a lot fussier. he used to be a big, crying punk a lot of the time and didn't take good naps. brynna sleeps good all day long and usually cries when she's hungry, gassy, or tired. sometimes it's hard to get her to stop, but nowhere near what caleb was like.

caleb slept for longer stretches in the night. by this time he was sleeping for 4-4.5 hours for one stretch, then 3 hours for the rest of the night. brynna sleeps good throughout the day, but generally her longest stretch at night is 3 hours. she usually just gets up, eats, and goes back to sleep, though. caleb sometimes used to get nutts at night and scream his head off.

caleb was smiling at this age...brynna, not so much. she smiled at my mom today, but she hasn't smiled at me yet. she does the shishi or gas smile, but not real smiles.

caleb startled easily when he slept on his back so we transitioned him to his tummy. brynna sleeps better on her tummy, but doesn't have the same startle reflex like caleb did when she's on her back.

caleb was a lot bigger and stronger at this age. brynna still seems so fragile.

i really wonder what brynna's personality will be like...caleb's such an entertainer and still so high-strung...i'm thinking they're personalities will be pretty different.

dangit, the short weekend is over and now i can't count on dave to do every other feeding during the night...sucks. oh well...off to bocha, put caleb to bed, and pray for good sleeps for brynna...

holy smokes...i'm freakin tired tonight. we'll see how tonight goes!!!

baby phat

i'm 15 lbs away from my goal weight. this is exactly where i was before i got pregnant with brynna. my goal is to reach my goal weight by the time the new school year starts, but if i continue on my same track, it's not going to happen.

i understand that in order to lose weight, i need to burn more calories than i consume. lol. back in the day i was so focused and determined when it came to reaching weight goals...in fact, kind of obsessive to the point of unhealthiness. now i don't have the willpower or the time. i used to enjoy running and pilates. now, i can't even begin to imagine going running. exercise feels like a chore now and i don't know how to change that mindset. add to that the fact that i had to "diet" during the last part of my pregnancy...it only makes me less inclined to deny myself anything now...lol. i love to eat too much to deny myself.

so how am i going to reach my goal? i dunno. i gotta figure it out still. wake up early and exercise? at this point, not gonna happen cuz every bit of sleep i can get is necessary. exercise when the kids are napping...well, might happen, if their naps happen at the same time and i'm not napping along with them. exercise with them...well, this one is more do-able...i wish i could be one of those mommies with the running stroller, jogging away as her kids take a nice ride along with her...lol. i really wish i was rich enough to buy me an eliptical thingy and just do that...

anyways, still pondering how to lose my weight...if i could lose weight by typing or watching food network, i'd be in great shape...

31...

turning 31 feels anti-climatic. i think after 30 it's kind of easy to forget exactly what year you're on...lol. pretty nutts to be in my 30s, though...seems like just yesterday i was a fresh-faced 21 year old!!!

today i decided to be brave and embark on a trip in the ghetto. my mom, caleb, brynna and i took a walk to waimalu market to pick up some veggies. we went around 10-11...and it was hella hot. brynna didn't like when i put her in the carrier, so i ended up carrying her, and let me tell you, 9 lbs gets heavy real quick!! my mom pushed caleb, and surprisingly made it up the hills on the way back. needless to say, i was tired as heck when we got back and luckily brynna ate and took a long nap and i got in a nice nap too, even though caleb was being less than cooperative about taking a nap at the same time. i think next time we'll try going the other way and take a walk to pearlridge. the sucky thing about walking around here is that the ghetto never invest in sidewalks so it's a bit scary walking with kids on the roadway with speeding idiots.

anyways, gonna get into bed now...but i know in about ten minutes after getting comfortable, brynna will be up wanting to eat.

flashbacks of caleb...

yesterday brynna slept pretty much throughout the whole day. her wide-eyed wakeful period came at about 9 p.m. and i was expecting the worse...and then, last night at midnight, i had some flashbacks of caleb and his colicky screaming. brynna was given 2 oz of milk at 900 pm, 2 more at 1030, and then she was put down for the night...only to wake up at 1150, seeming to want more.

we changed her diaper, made her milk, and proceeded to feed her...only to have her hungrily suck, then start to SCREAM....i was tired, she was tired, dave was tired...she screamed for about 10 minutes before she settled down and drank her milk.

10 minutes may not sound like much, but when you're trying to console an inconsolable, loudly screaming baby, it's torture!

luckily, though, after she ate, burped, and fell asleep, she went back down in her bassinet and slept again until 330! the rest of the night/morning was fine, and she ate, burped, and went back down quickly. whew!!!!

sleep, or lack thereof...

brynna has been relatively good as far as sleeping goes...relatively being a loose term, since i only have caleb to compare it to and he was a crazy, colicky little one. i have not had the experience of a baby sleeping for 12 hours like some lucky people (blake!). she's still eating every 2-3 hours...seems like a lot, but i dunno. sheez, caleb was almost 12 pounds when he was her age...so she still seems little to me. it's hard to remember his bobble-head days...i can't wait until her neck gets stronger cuz it's so weird to handle the bobble head...

today brynna has been especially gassy and uncomfortable. she seems to be most at ease when being fed by my mom...especially uneasy when being fed by dave. last night she had a 245-515 a.m. fussy, no like be put down period. dave fed her, she fussed, he carried her, she fussed, he tried to feed her again, she fussed and on and on. i took her from him about 400...she fussed, ate 2 oz, fussed, wanted to be carried, then finally passed out and allowed me to put her down. needless to say, waking up at 615 was not fun and i'm hella tired now. luckily i got in a little nap today after lunch...but i'm sure i will feel the tired hitting as brynna wakes up for her feedings tonight.

for the most part she's been giving us a good night followed by a rough night...thankfully, i guess. right now she's lying on her boppy with a paci in her mouth and she's sleeping.

she doesn't seem to have many awake times...she's a big sleeper during the day, which sucks. i'm going to borrow the baby whisperer book from the library on monday and see what i can do to improve her sleep cycle.