Two and Three (.5)

So, not only do I have two kids now, I have two kids that kinda do stuff.  In Harper's case it is things like grow, sleep, etc.  but in my mind this kid is too cute to not be documenting.  As always, if these kinds of posts aren't your thing, feel free to skip this one.  And also, please just pretend that the things I am writing and the pictures have anything to do with each other.

Harper at 2 months--

The Stats:
Height-22.5 inches (50th percentile)
Weight-12 lbs 11 oz (80th percentile) (and back to being the kind of giant baby the Manning house has become accustomed to)
Head: 15.5 inches (20th percentile)  (not at all a size the Manning house is accustomed to)
Who would have thought such a random assortment of percentiles would make such a freakin' cute baby?  But it sooo does...

Likes :  Bathtime, Baby Talk, Being Wrapped up super tight just so that she can bust her little arms out.
Dislikes:  Getting dressed, being hungry
Indifferent About:  Everything else, including all sorts of nearly violent acts her older brother tries to throw her way.

Skills:  Smiling, cooing, waving (not really, but the picture below kind of begs to differ), sleeping a 5 or 6 hour stretch at night .

Mom's favorite thing about her:  The girl is one NOISY sleeper.  Grunting, wheezing, heavy stalker breathing, the occasional snore...she does it all.  Which works out well for me.  I only have to put my hand on her chest a couple of times a night to make sure she is breathing instead of a couple times an hour like I did with Holden.  (Other people do that, right?  That is normal, totally unparanoid behavior??)

Holden at 3.5 years--

Stats:

Height--Pretty Tall

Weight--Super Heavy (especially when he wants to be carried while I also trying to lug around a giant baby and her massive carseat)

Head--Big as ever

Likes:  Swim Lessons,  "Partying" with the Archibalds (my parent's neighbors), having "slumbovers" with his Aunt Emily or in my mom and dad's room.

Dislikes:  Going to bed, dressing himself.

Indifferent About:  Using the potty.  Still.  I don't really want to talk about it.  

Skills:  Taking millions of self portraits on my phone without my knowledge, spelling his name for strangers.

Mom's favorite thing about him:  Like usual, it's the crazy things that this boy says...Some recent gems:

"Umm, that didn't really go so well."  (After an attempt to go to the bathroom alone.  You don't want more details, I promise).

"I got so excited I slipped and hurt my teeny tiniest toe."

"Is this new water or is it soggy?"

While Harper was crying.. "Harper, I told you, I don't like it when you bother me!"

Wow, these kind of posts are lots longer with two kids...If you made it this far, congratulations, and you are probably related to me. 

Easter Moments

I seem to have lost any ability to accurately document events in our life.  Easter is the latest casualty.  Basically, if it happened after we went to church on Easter Sunday or you aren't my kid, there are no pictures.  Please make do with the following.

Pictured:  Egg dying.  Possibly the messiest kid activity ever.  Whose idea was this anyways?  Let's take an incredibly fragile item and dump it in DYE, and just see what happens.  I'll tell you what happens.  Two annoyed parents try to bite their tongues to avoid sucking all the fun out of this family activity.



Pictured:  The Loot.  Holden was very pleased with his baseball glove, and less than impressed with the clothes Harper got.  I was excited to add another basket to the mix this year and also that the Easter Bunny came through big time with the adorable cake stand I've been eyeing.

Pictured:  Holden taking his sweet time finding eggs during the egg hunt, in which he is still the only participant.    The kid is in for a rude awakening in a year or two when all his moseying around results in his little sister getting all the eggs.

Pictured:  Easter outfits.  Best outfits of the year, hands down.  Too bad this was the best picture I got.  How do I tell Holden that less is more when it comes to showing me his gums?

Not pictured:
All the food!  I don't even know me anymore.
Family and friends.  They were there, I promise.
Teaching Holden how to make lipstick out of Robin Eggs.  The fact that such an important coming of age ritual wasn't documented is a tragedy.

The Kids Are Alright

For those of you who may have been concerned that my lack of posting meant that having two kids has done me in, this one is for you.  It's not a pretty post.  But my mom has an innate ability to tell when Holden and I are about to be on enemy terms and whisks him away on some awesome grandma adventure (someone please tell me why I am trying to move out of here), so I am on borrowed time.

Despite the long and frustrating learning curve that comes with having to start sharing everything when you have pretty much never had to hear the word share in your whole life, Holden remains as cute as ever.  His love for The Beatles still reigns on (although he is increasingly becoming a fan of the Foo Fighters as well).   Here he is jamming out.  Since this is not a pretty post, it hasn't been edited for content or to fit in the time allowed, but I still think it is worth your time to take a peek. Plus, you can hear Harper hiccuping in the background, and that is cute stuff, my friends.



Despite having an overzealous big brother with an affinity for trying to push in her soft spot, Harper continues to thrive and be pretty much an adorable angel baby.   In typical second child fashion, she has far fewer pictures of her than Holden had at this age.  The biggest reason for this is because I never want to put her down long enough to take her picture.  She is super cuddly and I am too busy taking advantage of every second of that to bother with documenting it.  I do manage to sneak in a camera phone picture here and there, and here is one to prove that she does exist.

So there you have it.  Enjoy, because who knows when the next post is coming your way.  Seriously, when I had a kid I had to learn how to do things one handed.  Now that I have two, I am trying to learn how to do things no handed.....What do people with three kids do, try to grow an extra arm?  

At least I completed something on my 30 by 30 list!  (#3)