Sunday, August 30, 2015

Lately in Our Lives...


Hanging out and watching Tae grab his feet 

Tae, just like every other baby, has finally come to love Sofie.

Our date nights look a little different nowadays...Tae loves being a third wheel  
Sunday afternoons are made for the pool 

This face...I can't even start.  
Ready to go for a walk

My boys before school one day 

We tried out the big boy position in the stroller. He seemed to like it. 

Feeling better after being sick for a few days
He loves looking at the screen on the camera (or phone, or tv, etc...)

One of his favorite toys

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

5 Months

5 Months 
August 19, 2015 

Height:  26.5 inches 
Weight: 16.5 pounds  




Together as a family...finally. 
Likes: 
  • Jumping any and everywhere...on laps, his jumper, tables, floors. 
  • Keila--this is such a blessing I feel so much better about leaving him because he loves her so much.
  • Baths...he kicks and smiles the whole time. 
  • Morning time...I love when he first wakes up, he is so happy and smiley.
  • Balls! This kid reaches for and plays with any ball in sight. 
  • Peek-a-Boo and running at him.  He literally cracks up and gets the biggest smile on his face. 
  • Funny voices, particularly Daffy Duck. 
  • Outside. 
  • Watching cars and people from the window. 
  • Kicking his legs up in the air (think ab workout) 
  • People. He goes to anyone and always flashes a big smile when people talk to him.
Playing Peek a Boo 
Hanging out at the pool

Cheering mommy up after a rough day

Two American Hunks

Dislikes:
  • Sun in his eyes 
  • Daddy's lion's roar


Milestones:
  • Rolling over--front to back and back to front. He gets so proud of himself. Although when he sleeps and happens to roll over he has seem to forgotten how to get back over and proceeds to cry until we roll him over.
  • Sitting up, but we are right there by him because he is still quite wobbly.  
  • Fine motor skills are increasing. He can pinch things with his pointer and thumb and has a mean grab (especially when going for hair). 
  • Found all his fingers and his thumb and is constantly putting them in his mouth. 
  • Flew all around the States and back to Brazil successfully! (Don't know if this is a milestone, but I'm celebrating it!) 



Sleep
  • We are still working on naps. He takes them but they aren't consistent and sometimes aren't for very long. 
  • He goes down around 8 PM and then gets up at 7ish, with one or two feedings throughout the night.  When he only wakes up one time I wake up and pump the other time to stock up for when I'm working. 
  • Still sleeps in his magic suit and is uses his paci to fall asleep. Most nights it falls out once he falls and he is fine with that. He has started to suck on his fingers/thumb/hand.
  • Able to sooth himself most of the time, but not all the time.  He can get himself really pissed off, and then there is no chance he will calm himself down. 
Happy guy in the morning 

Favorite Moments: 
  • Cousin and family time in Six Mile! He was smothered with hugs, kisses, and lots of "Heys" from his sweet cousins. 
  • Reuniting with daddy again! Jess finished his Masters in Madrid and got to spend one day with the whole family. 
  • Rolling over and sitting up. For some reason these two things make me feel like he isn't a helpless baby anymore. 
  • Meeting all of mama's FU ball teammates in Atlanta  
  • Swimming in the pool.  We joked because he had a poker face the whole time, you couldn't tell if he loved it or hated it.  

Grammy and some for grandkids
Poker Face




Justin LOVES Baby Tae

Trey showing Tae some love

Pics to Remember: 


Mommy's Thoughts: 

The beginning of this month was hard, mainly because Jess was gone...again. Being with my family did make it better, but it was still hard.  There is something about having your best friend, biggest supporter, and partner with you that no one else can replace. Then when Jess got back we immediately headed back to Brazil and started to get into a routine as a family of three. 

That being said, man did Tae grow this month.  He started rolling over, sitting up, laughing more, and overall just showing more of his sweet personality. He is honestly such a chill and happy baby. We joked that he is much more of a Tae than a Taz. He was so patient and allowed all his cousins to bully love on him, even when it sometimes led to a poke in the eye or some hair being pulled. 

Some of my favorite times this month were when Tae and I were simply together just the two of us.  Whether it was me holding him crying because I was overwhelmed (keeping it real here), nursing him, or just in the card, I cherished those alone moments. Being a mom is the hardest thing I have ever done, I can't quite figure out why, I think it is because I know I can never be perfect at it. All I can do is rely on God daily to give me the strength, patience, and mind to be the best mom I can to Tae. I also think it has something to do with it being never ending and a selfless job. Honestly I have struggled with balancing my mommy side with my pre-Tae life, but I'm getting better at it. It helps to have Tae and now Jess around because I have totally had my moments when I don't think I can do it anymore, but then Tae goes and does something adorably cute and I melt or Jess says or does something for me that is exactly what I need and I realize that it's not I that needs to do this it is WE that get the blessing of doing it. 

Tae--we are finally back as a family. Your dad rocked his Masters and now we are adjusting to life back in Brazil. You are a trooper and do so well when we travel, which is a good thing because we plan on showing you tons of this big beautiful world. You are so happy and always flash your wide open smile. You are starting to talk more, which sounds more like a squeal but we love it. Your absolutely love movement of any kind.  Your new favorite game is us surpassing you and running up on you.  Your whole body shimmies and shakes and then you laugh and laugh (see a little of what I'm talking about below). You are teaching us so much, sometimes I think you are teaching us more than we are teaching you. I have started back to work and miss you like crazy, but I feel thankful that you have Keila, just another person that loves you deeply. 











Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Laughter is the Best Medicine

With my maternity leave coming to an end and being back in Brazil away from family my mind often wanders and I find myself having a pity party.  It doesn't take much from Tae to make my heart smile again. He snaps me out of my rabbit hole of darkness and I remind myself of all the blessings God has given us--a healthy growing boy, 5 months at home with him, spending tons of quality time with family during my maternity leave, being back together as a family, a great nanny that will love and care for him while we work, jobs to provide for our family, beautiful winter weather, and the list goes on.

When so much of my world feels in limbo (starting a new job, getting reaquainted as a family, an ever changing baby, resettling into Brazil, etc) it is nice to be in the moment with Tae. It helps that it's pretty easy to get him laughing...




Lately We've Been...


Making our way back home to Brazil...daddy needed a beer to start off
Savoring every nap with Tae on my chest 

Flapping and wiggling everywhere 

Learning to like tummy time 

Eating and putting everything in his mouth 

Hanging out at the pool on Saturday, yes it is winter here in Brazil

Enjoying family cuddles on Sunday morning. He was so happy and giggly, I couldn't help but cherish this moment. 
Playing with mama and soaking in every second before I return to work.

Smiling and grabbing feet all day long.

Learning to sleep without the Magic Sleeptsuit (not going so well by the way)


Thursday, August 6, 2015

Moving and a Shaking (Sitting Up and Rolling Over)

It is so hard to remember the big milestones, so I figured I would TRY to document our growing up too fast boy, Tae. He has gained a lot of new movements and perspectives over the last couple weeks.

Sitting Up: Monday, July 20th
It's amazing how much Tae has improved at sitting up.  I took this video about 2 weeks ago and he is so much better at sitting up and he actually likes it now (contrary to this video).





Rolling Over from His Tummy to Back: Wednesday,  July 29th
Tae shocked himself by rolling over from his front to his back.  We have been helping or trying to show him how to do it, and I guess he finally decided he was annoyed with our help.  He did it with no problem, but he couldn't hide the surprise on his face.



Rolling Over Back to Front: Thursday, July 30th
The first time he did it I was in the kitchen making a healthy bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I left him on his back in the family room for a brief moment and when I came back he was on his stomach. I asked mom if she put him on his stomach and she hadn't so we knew he rolled over. He did it again after I came over to play. Sadly, I haven't captured this on film yet.  However, it is his new favorite thing to do so hopefully I can get it soon.

I know I say this every time and it's getting old, but where does the time go?  It seems like just yesterday I held this little nugget in my arms and had no clue what to do.  He just looked back at me and couldn't do anything and now he is starting to move and interact?! Craziness.  God's planning and creation is amazing and I feel so blessed to get a front row seat to Tae's growing up.