One year!

A year ago I was sleep deprived and in love. My tiny second born arrived and it has been a wild year.

Big brother adjusted to no longer being an only child and grew to be a pretty sweet with "his baby." Most recently he said, "I'll datect Milo."

We swapped houses for more quiet and more space. Milo started daycare and begin to grow into a real person.

Going from one to two is a huge change. Going anywhere from a restaurant to an airplane turns into a  production. We found somewhat of a rhythm and as Milo gets older certain things are easier. (like not having to carry a whole nursery). Certain things are harder (like having a squirmy toddler who tries to jump out of high chairs and pull everything off the table).

Still, we were definitely more relaxed than with Collin. It also helped that Milo is a lot less dramatic. From the beginning, he has been mellow, goes with the flow, and smiles nearly all day. He is curious like his big brother and maybe more dangerous. He also has to catch up with him so rolling, crawling and walking have all been a lot sooner than he expected.

For a while, I was worried we were never going to sleep. Collin slept through the night at three months but we weren't so lucky this time. After we moved and Milo slept in his own crib, he finally started sleeping through the night (probably around 8 months). Now he goes 12 hours or more and is pretty much on one nap a day.

It's so fun to see the difference in personalities between my two boys. I have a feeling, Collin will always be more emotional and intense but at the same time, fun, full of energy and creative. Milo, like Collin is social and also busy, busy, but so far we haven't seen too many outbursts. And while he does get frustrated, generally he's just content. Both boys love to cuddle and show their love. I can't wait until Milo gives me those sloppy toddler kisses.

Happenings in the world of Milo:

• Giraffe blankey (thanks Aunty Joanne and Uncle Keene!)
• Pacifiers. Weirdly he didn't start liking these until a few months ago where they discovered at school it was the only thing to get him to nap. I'm okay with it as we don't "plug" him in often and supposedly it's easier to break that habit than thumb sucking.
• Like his brother, he loves most fruit especially blueberries and apples.
• He's still a good eater but starting to show a pickier side.
• Gets very excited about Hurley the cat and loves chasing his brother or mom and dad with his arms outstretched--Mike coined it the baby zombie run.
• He's now the big baby in his class at school and will join the "Koalas" (aka toddlers) in June. It'll be exciting to see him start to speak French as he spends his time in an immersion environment. So far, not too many words besides "Mama and Dada" and lots of babbling.
• He loves opening up drawers and trying to climb into the dishwasher. He would also swim in the toilet if we let him. He's starting to stack toys and likes clanging things together. Everything still goes in the mouth and Collin's tiny toys are routinely pulled out of his cheeks. One of his favorite games is to roll a ball. It's also great fun to hand a toy to someone back and forth.
• He also loves to get into anything his big brother has, such as blocks or coloring. This usually results in Collin screaming and pushing Milo out of the way. I can understand Collin's frustration so it's always interesting trying to keep Milo away while Collin is playing. Of course the most scream evoking will happen if Milo messes with interrupting Collin's TV watching.
• He has a total of four teeth and I think some more may be coming on the top
• So far, he has no interest in cow or soy milk. Nursing is still enjoyable, the biting seems rare now. Knowing he is most likely my last baby makes it all the harder to think about weaning him...

So without further adieu, presenting Milo through the months:






















And the big numero uno

One more week...

Until Milo is an official toddler. The other week I bagged up Milo's clothes that were too small to donate to charity (save for a few cute pieces I couldn't part with). Then I pulled out Collin's 12-18 month clothes and found myself on the floor wanting to crawl into the fetal position and bawl. It's bittersweet knowing it's our last baby. I'm  comfortable with that decision, but also saddened knowing that my tiny little newborn days are gone.

And so it goes...

Milo is nearly one year old! And he is everywhere!

The Dark Knight starring Collin

Here he comes from the shadows









What kind of crimes will I fight today?






I couldn't go anywhere without my cool boots


Better hurry down the pole



Just another day in the life of Batman...

Collinisms

Four-year-olds are funny, sweet, little people with absolutely no filter. I'm trying to remember to write down some of his gems before it becomes a distant memory and conversations consist of grunts and one word answers.

1. "Do you know how to say butt in French? Le butt!"
   
2. "Milo is made of wiggles"
   
3. Mike had to go to Trenton, NJ for five days for work (a real exciting town). Collin to me: "Someday when I'm older you'll be alone with Milo and I'll go to New Jersey with dad. I love him."
   
4. Upon walking into a Mexican restaurant with a strong seafood aroma. Collin very loudly, "Ew it smells so stinky. It smells like butts. Gross." Mike and I quickly tried to quiet him, luckily he was happy with his quesadilla and the waiter didn't seem like he spit in his food.
   
5. Collin: "I don't like you mom. Fuck!"
   Me: "Collin do not say that."
   Collin: "I said puck. Puck."
   
6. "Can I marry you mama?"
   
7. "Can we do love?" (aka cuddles)
   
8. Collin:"He's on the list."
   Me: "What list?"
   Collin: "My birthday party. If you're mean to me you're off the list. You're on the list too mom."
   And so it begins...
   
9. On talking about our best and worst parts of the day:
   
   "My best part was playing Candy Land with mom and dad and dad won and I didn't get upset. My worse part was not watching 100 tv's."
   
   "The best part of my day was cuddling with you, the worst part is dad smells like throw-up." (After which Mike took a shower)

11 months!

Only one more month until Milo is an official toddler!

He started taking a few steps by himself a few weeks ago and I imagine will be full on walking by his birthday.






He loves to jabber, bath time, and push the little wagon that he inherited from Collin. (He also has a huge smile on his face when Collin pushes him in the wagon). He is still a happy little trouble maker. His new goal is to infiltrate the wine fridge and the cabinet that holds the wine glasses. The kitchen is probably his favorite place where he can pull everything out of the recycling bin and reach into drawers and play with tupperware.

Poor guy has not had a break with sickness. We're on our third back-to-back ear infection while just getting over pink eye (on top of a cough and endless runny nose). Next step is a visit to the ENT to evaluate whether or not he'll need tubes. We never experienced this with Collin luckily (for him it would've been extra scary because of his hearing loss). I feel bad for my poor miserable baby. It feels like newborn zombie land these last few nights with Milo waking up every few hours, hopefully the new dose of antibiotics helps clear things up.

Meanwhile I have to actually start thinking about his birthday. I envision his own mini cake that he sticks his face in and photo happy mama snapping away.

Mele Kalikimaka

We spent 11 days soaking up the sun in Kauai to escape the cold Oregon grey.

 This was Milo's first real plan trip (I'm not counting the 60 minute ride to central California).  I forget how far Hawaii is. Six long hours. Collin is fine as long as he has the iPad (and yes it's the only time I don't care that he watches four straight hours of screen time) plus some coloring and books to keep him busy. Milo on the other hand is now a squirmy baby. We had quite a few walks down the aisle and also visited it with grandma, grandpa and Uncle Devin all on the same flight. Milo managed to sleep about an hour in our laps. Then there was a two hour layover in Honolulu. Clearly the state of Hawaii does not feel the need to update any of their airports which feel like straight our of the 1960's with some fast food offerings and touristy shops.

It was basically 12 hours of travel before we made it to our condo steps from the beach in the eastern side (Coconut coast) of the island.Big sigh of relief when I sat outside and could hear the soothing waves and feel that light breeze without needing a jacket.





This was our first time to Kauai and I could immediately see why it's the "Garden Isle." Maui is beautiful and one of my favorite places in the world with the beaches you envision on postcards--white sand, swaying palm trees, plus it has Haleakala and Hana. The Big Island has the volcanoes and also some nice beaches though a lot of it resembles a desert. I've only seen the airport in Oahu so can't really compare much to that island. But Kauai was like stepping into another country all together. Lush with canopies of trees that look like they belonged in the Serengeti. So much green and all the tropical flowers I love--Hibiscus, Birds of Paradise, with a scent of Plumeria in the air.



I had been fighting a cold that was struck down by the heat and sunshine. We tasted fresh fish, the best banana bread ever, surprisingly great Mexican food, shave ice and fruity cocktails. Everywhere we went, we seemed to run into people connected to Oregon. This includes a guy who owned some of the best ice cream I've ever tasted at Tropical Dreams. He was proud to show me his Linfield shirt for his son's first college year. He offered me tastes of fresh flavors like guava, coconut almond fudge and lemon gelato. I brought back five half pints for New Year's Eve and it was devoured. The owner just bought a house in McMinville and plan to move in the fall (of course they have to keep a condo in Hawaii). He plans to offer his ice cream at PSU and Linfield (lucky college students).



Collin loved going back and forth between our condo, my parents and Devin's, and Sherry and Olivia's. He spent half his day battling the waves and laughing as his skin darkened to a nice tan. Milo wasn't too keen on the ocean but did like touching the sand (and trying to eat it). We went on a couple hikes while my parents watched the kids. One was called "Sleeping Giant" and had a tough climb with a great view from the top and tropical birds giving us beautiful melodies. The other one was awesome the whole way with panoramic canyon views.












The beach by our condo was fun and perfect for Collin. I still haven't found a beach that rivals the ones in Maui where I feel like I could just lie down all day but they certainly didn't disappoint. We explored Hanelei which was beautiful but the waves were way too rough for any swimming. Waimea Canyon was awe striking, though the drive there could practically rival Hana in Maui (twisty corkscrew turns equal nausea for me)! Everyone says the helicopter tours are amazing but I couldn't swallow the price. Maybe next time.



It was hard to leave the tropical sunshine for the inevitable cold and rain. Collin said it best, "I want to go to the beach everyday and live here."

In the meantime, perhaps our next tropical vacation will be without kids. The flight back felt like it was eternal. Collin napped (mostly because he was exhausted from the sun) but Milo slept for a total of ten minutes and proceeded to squirm the whole flight back while we switched turns entertaining him.

Mike and I still fantasize about buying a place in Hawaii later in life and spending the cold season there (and the rest of the time in Oregon and traveling around the world). I read an article that said Hawaiians are the happiest in the country and who could blame them. Get up, play in the beach, relax in the tropical sun, hike in a rain forest...Someday.

Fa la la la

Collin and Milo had their holiday concert last week. Collin loves music and singing and has been practicing his French songs at home over and over. Milo can bop up and down to the beat and likes to clap (though he hasn't quite mastered his French ABC's).

All the kids were dressed up and headed back stage with their classes (except for the babies). Class by class they came up on stage to demonstrate their singing skills. There was definitely some funny moments with the little ones who were all over the stage and one kid who dominated a microphone. The Nonours (teddy bear) class came up with the parents holding the babies while the next level up sang.

Good job clapping Milo!




Last but not least was the Lions pre-k class. Collin and the other classmates stood together in harmony and sang the familiar songs we've heard at home. Collin was proud in the front row.