Week with Daddy

It was so great to have Matt here this week. Amelia had fun with her Daddy, but after dealing with Amelia all day for a week, I think Matt's ready to get back to work. Matt commented that Amelia "owes us" for all we've been put through with her over the last 2 years.

A few events of the week:

"The Costco Incident"

We went to Costco one night and Amelia picked something off of the floor in the cold room where they keep the flower bouquets. I thought it was a leaf and told her to put it down and come out since we were ready to check out. A few seconds later she was pointing to her mouth saying "spicy." I didn't know why she would say that and looked back and saw the thing she had picked up was a cut hot pepper. What it was doing there, I will never know, but she started crying and saying spicy over and over so I ran to get her some water. By the time I got the water, she was in hysterics. She had touched her eyes and was now thrashing her hands on her face in hopes that the pain would go away, but she was only making it worse. Her face was getting redder and redder and even swollen. I tried to get her to drink water, but she was freaking out too much. The only thing we could do was get home quickly and run her face under water. She screamed almost the whole way home, but had calmed down by the time we got there. We got her in the shower to rinse what was left of the pepper and got her to calm down and go to bed. But the poor thing looked miserable. This picture was taken an hour after the event, and she was still red and swollen. Poor thing. I had never heard her scream like that and it broke my heart.


"Family Walk"

It was so nice to get out and enjoy the beautiful fall weather.




"Matt's New Shoes"

OK, these shoes have been a debate in our household. They are lime green and green with a blue Nike "swoosh." I think they are hideous, but Matt thinks they're cool. I must admit they do look better on and i guess since it's Nike, it's cool?

"Fun with Daddy"

Amelia hung out with her dad a lot - going to the park, the zoo, the children's museum, out for walks, and just hanging out at home. It was so nice to have someone else do it for a change.

Of course, Amelia loved the petting zoo at the Zoo

watching princess and alphabet songs on YouTube with daddy

"At Home with Mom"

As usual, Chase just ate and slept and when he was awake, he never made a peep - he just looked around the room. He's gaining over an ounce a day and now weighs 6lbs! Crazy. His looks are changing daily as he piles on the baby fat.

"Loving her Babies"

Amelia had fun loving her babies

Morning Doggy

And so did I.

If only I could have help all day everyday...

These past 2 weeks at home have been wonderful - largely because I have had Matt's mom, my mom, and Matt here to help me 24 hours a day. As I type, Amelia is at the Zoo with her dad, the laundry is all done and folded, and Chase is happily staring at me with his little blue eyes. If only all moms could have someone to help out all day everyday. Wouldn't that be amazing?? Sure, there are still moments of frustration - Amelia isn't sleeping well and wants her mom all the time and nursing a preemie is non-stop and takes FOREVER - but to have help here to make meals, do dishes, take Amelia to the park, etc. - while I get to enjoy my new baby, accomplish things I haven't had time to do in months,...man, it doesn't get much better than this. We'll see how things go next week when life goes back to normal and it's just me and the kids...

Chase is doing so well and again, is such a great baby. He has gained a full pound in 2 weeks and is now 5 lbs 3 oz. I love to see him getting chubby cheeks and a double chin. His legs and arms are still skinny and he's got the teeniest bum, but at the rate he's going, he'll fill out in no time.

Amelia always wants to hold him

And give him a "big hug" - this picture made me laugh because it looks like she's squishing him and he's reaching for help - which is exactly what's happening :)

Big Sister and little brother - this would have been a lot cuter if their eyes were open, but this is the best one I could get.

Grandma Adams with the Bond kiddos - we loved having my mom here! She was such a huge help and Amelia loved playing with her. Amelia still says "grandma go?" then answers herself by saying "home to Utah"

Amelia playing outside in her new hat

Amelia loves to help me make cookies - and we've made a lot of cookies over the past few weeks. So much for losing the pregnancy weight :)

Amelia wears me out and drives me nuts a lot, but how can you get mad at a face like this?

I couldn't resist posting this picture:

This was Amelia's outfit of choice after her bath the other night - as you can see, both the hat and robe are a bit too small.

Life with 2 Babies

Life with 2 babies is actually easier than I thought it would be. Don't get me wrong, it isn't easy - I don't do anything but feed them and play with them and I haven't gotten the "kids napping at the same time" thing down, but I had imagined having another "Amelia baby" plus a toddler to keep from squishing that baby. To my happy surprise, Chase actually sleeps and Amelia is so cute with her little brother. She loves to kiss him, hold him, bathe him, give him high-5, and pacify him with his binky. The first thing she says when she sees him is "hi baby Chase" and "so cute."



The only time Amelia gets jealous is when I am feeding/pumping - which takes over an hour 8+ times a day (yuk), but usually she is happy when I let her watch Disney princess sing-along clips on YouTube. Her favorite right now is Beauty and the Beast.

But Chase is SUCH a great baby! I can't even believe a baby can actually fall asleep without you holding them and stay asleep for 3 hours instead of 30 minutes. I constantly think back to what life was like with Amelia and I can't believe I survived and can't believe how good I have it now. We had a rocky but lucky start with Amelia in the NICU but the entire 2 years of her life have been a constant trial of my patience. I love the kid, she is incredibly fun, spirited, social, smart, and sweet, but when she doesn't want to do something she is good letting you know it - we're working on that, but she still likes to run in the street, hates to get dressed, and doesn't sleep well. Let's just say she's had to spend quite a bit of time in her room by herself...

All in all life in the Bond house is good, busy but good. Thank heavens for my mom who cooks and cleans - I don't know what I'm going to do when she leaves this week. PB&J anyone?

daddy reading books to Chase before bed

He is even mellow when he's awake

He liked my Tootsie Pop:)

Little boy with normal-sized swaddling blanket

This is how he looks 90% of the day

amelia and mommy had fun playing in the rain - of course she was naked under that umbrella

My cutie-patootie