Five on Friday!

Happy Friday!
Writing about 5 little things that have happened during the week is one of the easiest ways for me to document what our life is like these days. So let's get right to it...

1. Smiles
Last week Elliot starting making little smiles that have turned into huge smiles this week. Gabby loves seeing him smile and thinks that he thinks that she is so funny! After a few weeks of intense evening time colic, these sweet smiles are a welcome treat. Elliot is 7 weeks old today (seriously where does time go???) and gets easier as the days go by. Part of me still can't believe we have 2 kids and another part feels like we've had 2 forever. And the never ending pile of laundry makes me feel like we have a small army living here! Seriously though, how does one small baby create 10x as much laundry???? 

 2. Hair
Our children's hair makes me laugh so hard. First we have Gabriella who was bald forever and now has a crazy head of blond curls. She wakes up looking like a tornado went through her room.

She's had a few haircuts that I just wasn't thrilled with because they still left me not knowing what to do with her hair. Finally last week she got a cut that is adorable and easier to maintain! The curls are still there but the layering in the back makes it  look a lot cleaner and in control.

 And then we have Elliot. Born with a full head of hair that could have been put in a barrette if he was a girl. As he has gotten bigger, the hair has gotten even funnier. I swear we don't style it or make it do this; his locks have a mind of their own that make me smile every day. Eventually this baby mohawk will be gone and we will miss it!

3. Colic
One of, if not the hardest things that came with a new baby was an unexpected bout of colic. Gabriella had bouts of extreme crying after we brought her home but it was due to severe reflux from being intubated for so long. It was heartbreaking because she was actually in pain but once medication was figured out and working, she was great. With Elliot it was classic colic. It started when he was 3 weeks old and seemed to "turn off" almost a week ago (just around his 6 week birthday). The first two weeks of it were brutal; it would start around 6pm and he would cry and be basically inconsolable for hours. On the worst nights we would walk up and down our road which would distract him a little. Driving didn't help and he would frantically nurse every hour. The most frustrating thing was that he was the most laid back baby during the day and then the switch would flip in the evenings and he would be so different. It would stop anytime between 10-1am and he'd be back to "normal". Our pediatrician told us to hang in there until 6 weeks when it usually gets better which, knock on wood, it has. The book, The Happiest Baby on the Block, was also a great help. Elliot loves being swaddled and that combined with a white noise machine has really helped out.  I'm happy to share any tips that worked for us if you are interested!

And the last two are shout outs to two great people...

4. Sandy's birthday
Wishing my sister Sandy a very, very happy birthday today! She has been my partner in crime since
 '82 and I hope she has the very best day! I love watching our kids grow together and we have a blast every time we visit.

5. Mother's Day
 And finally, a very happy Mother's day to all of you but especially to my mom. You truly don't appreciate everything your mom has done for you until you have kids of your own. So thank you for everything you have done and continue to do for us!

From last year.... why don't I have any updated photos???

Have a wonderful weekend!
xo,
Mary