Ike - 5 year stats

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Ike went for his check-up this year and he has grown and 3.5 inches and 4.5 lbs since last year!  He is really going through a growth spurt right now and easily eating twice as much food in a day as he did a month ago.  The other morning he asked for a 3rd piece of french toast for breakfast!

• 45 inches (75th percentile)
• 42 lbs  (60th percentile)

He is doing great and getting geared up to start Kindergarten next year.  He will be staying at MSYC for their full-day K program.  The option for full day for him just felt like a natural step - some of his friends will move onto public school but he will see them again soon enough in 1st grade.    He is soaking everything in and we now have to watch what we say around him.  He asks a million questions a day and they are sometimes really good questions like, "Mom, why don't evergreen branches break with the snow on them?"  At the dinner table the other night, I asked Ike "what did you learn today?" - he says, "I learned about Martin Luther King and how he made a difference. Did you know the dark skinned people used to have to sit in the back of the bus and the light skinned people in the front. Can you believe it? But, Martin Luther King changed all that!" Harcourt and I just looked at each other and smiled. He is taking Spanish and he constantly sings Spanish songs or mixes Spanish words in with his conversation, we are hoping to get him in some more classes outside of school. He also takes Yoga at school and the thought of Ike doing yoga makes me laugh because he has a hard time being still but the teacher said he is great in class and he can do the moves so well!!

Ike loves the snow, skiing, Vermont and anything associated with the white stuff! Although he does often ask if we can move to Hawaii or California :)  On our annual voyage to Sugarbush this year, he made it 4 full days with the big boys as I was back at the condo managing Legare. I think one day it was 10 degrees and we told him it was going to be so cold and tried to get him to cave in but he didn't and Harcourt said he didn't complain once. He took a ski lesson one day and really enjoyed it - the instructor said he was very impressed with what Ike could do. We have 2 more Vermont trips coming up soon and he is so excited to get back out there! Yesterday, we had a small snow event that turned into slush but he jumped out of bed and couldn’t wait to get his boots on to frolic around in the snow.

Ike is still the sweetest boy and loves his family so much.  However, as anticipated, his patience occasionally wears a little thin for Legare when he comes to take or destroy what Ike is playing with (legos, blocks etc) but he is amazingly cool about it and adapted his playing style accordingly.   He knows Legare so well and whenever Legare starts to cry Ike will shout "Peek-a-boo! Where's Ike?!" in the hopes of getting him to laugh :) At night after bath, they love to play on Ike's bed and it all ends with them in their pjs snuggling and hugging each other. Watching their interactions makes my heart melt and puts all the hard work of parenting 2 right into perspective!

WE LOVE YOU IKE!

Miss Glennda

Friday, October 07, 2011

Legare's first year of life on this blog wouldn't be complete without mentioning Miss Glennda. She was new to the school but when I met Glennda I knew right away she had an amazing love for babies. I handed Legare over to her at 9 weeks and our bond only grew stronger and stronger all year. She is a religious woman and I do believe God gave her a special blessing. She genuinely loves them as if her own, has incredible patience and is wicked organized - all of the above are so priceless when it comes to handing your baby over everyday when you go off to work. I will admit I have grown a thick skin to the occasional tears at drop-off but most days Glennda swoops him up and he is happy as a clam :) I recognize that many people are against 'daycare' and the idea of leaving your baby in others' hands. But, I have found great comfort in the little world that my boys spend their days in and I wouldn't have it any other way (unless I didn't have to work). They are very social, well rounded, caring and bright little people and I owe so much of that to the experiences they get at school. So, each to their own but this works for us and these photos pretty much sum it up.

Thank you Glennda for taking such good care of Legare!

He has moved across the hall to the "waddler" room but he still looks across for Glennda and gets a hug whenever he can.

Being a Mommy

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Since it was recently Mother's Day, I wanted to write a little note about being a mommy. Becoming a mother is by far the best thing I have done in my life - yet, it is also the most difficult thing I have ever done. I think it is important to recognize not only the glory of motherhood but also the challenge. It is the challenges that make us strong for everyone to lean on.

I have a great handle on Ike and we have a mutual respect when it comes to discipline and understanding what mommy wants and expects. I think I am a pretty tough disciplinarian and I have no problem executing my threats! Ike is very loving and even in the moments of discipline there is always a hug and/or an I love you.

Legare on the other hand is so darn cute but he creates a different set of challenges with all the normal baby things: lack of communication, teething, constant routine changes as he grows and interrupted sleep. For me, those things have been harder the 2nd time around - I think mostly because when Ike was born we didn't know any different :) But, his little toothy smile makes all those struggles melt away.

Juggling the “balance” of 2 kids and 2 working parents is not easy but at the end of the day we are so blessed that our family is healthy and all the little hiccups of the day are just that - and, someday we will all sleep through the night!

I love my little blue hats!

8.11.10 Legare Sawyer11.29.06 Harcourt Frederic "Ike"

where have we been...

Wednesday, March 09, 2011

Since our last post, we have been busy and sorry for the delay! Harcourt has been traveling tons for work and I have been juggling all of my photography work along with a full-time job and 2 kids! Seeing Ike & Legare giggle at each other makes it all worth it but these boys make for a full schedule from dawn til dusk. My recent hectic days has led us to make the decision to reduce my work week at the law firm to 4 days so I can dedicate a day (Fridays!) to Kerry Schutz Photography and our family needs. This has been a long time coming and is beyond exciting - yahoo!!

silly time after the bath....

Legare says "YAY!" to Mommy's new schedule

Ike- 4 years

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Ike turned 4 on 11/29. He is such a hysterical little guy and we enjoy just sitting back and watching him grow up right before our eyes. He has always been quite a character and his enthusiasm is a strong part of his personality. He is absorbing so much at school and reading with him at night is the highlight of my day. Sometimes I let him 'read' to me and it just makes me laugh to hear what he comes up with. He read a book at school around the holidays called Gingerbread Man and he can literally recite the entire book word for word - I will work on getting a video clip. He is into playing app games on my iphone and new ipad I got for Christmas - kids these days have it good and he is learning so much while having fun, brilliant!

• 37.4 lbs, 70th percentile
• 41.5 inches, 75th percentile

For Christmas this year, Santa talked me into this electric mini 4-wheeler and, of course, the accompanying motorcycle helmet. We had told him before that he was too little but he asked Santa for one his size. When he saw Santa brought him one he was so excited! The premise for this is that down at Kyle & Bing's house there are acres of woods where the boys play with their toys (backhoe, polaris, tractor etc) and Ike used to take his little John Deere down there but it always got stuck with its insufficient plastic tires (or so that was Santa's argument). Also, Ike has a good track record with being quite coordinated and careful so needless to say Mrs. Claus caved in.

Legare- 5 months

Wow, ok Legare is 5 mos and I am way behind on my pictures (see paragraph 2 for reason). He is getting so big and full of personality. There are times that he smiles so hard his whole body crunches and he grabs his hands in delight. He is quite routine just as Ike was with bottles at 9:30, 12:30, 3:30, 6:30 and asleep by 7. I am still nursing/pumping so he can get half of his milk from me, it is a dedication but one I am happy to do for him. During Christmas break, I started him on cereal/baby food and he is learning how the whole eating thing works :) He is rolling around like crazy and sitting up pretty good so he can now enjoy things like the exersaucer and johnny jumper. No teeth yet but he has been teething like a mad man for the last month + so hoping something comes through soon.

I am going on 5 mos of sleep deprivation (thus behind on my pictures!) but he is slowly getting better- he consistently goes from 7pm-2/3am and then usually up at least once more before up for the day around 6-7am. I keep hoping that 6 mos will be the turning point, one more month to go!

As for stats he is CRAZY tall - officially off the chart now!

• 15lbs 8 ozs (30th percentile)
• 28 inches (>95th percentile) - really I hope he isn't going to be 6'6"!!!!!

still enjoys his bath in the kitchen sink

we trimmed the mowhawk since it seemed the rest of his hair would never catch up

(below is the photo of Ike post his first haircut, 12 wks)

Big brother Ike is still smothering his 'Wubby' with love every day!

Love

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

Ike and I were reading one of his favorite books last night Ferdinand the Bull. We got to the part about Ferdinand's love for 'his favorite cork tree' where he chooses to spend all his days because it just makes him happy. Ike looked at me and said "Mom, Ferdinand loves his cork tree like I love you". It just melted my heart!

Mr. Personality- 8 weeks

Thursday, October 07, 2010

Smiling and cooing! We can't get enough of our little Legare. He is an amazing baby and he is making new expressions and sounds each day. I simply can't imagine how I am going to be able to leave this precious face to go back to work next week. I know I did it before with Ike and survived but I am not looking forward to it.

5 More Minutes

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

I have been meaning to document Ike's saying more on the blog so here we go. For a little background, I tend to look at my watch and tell Ike "5 more minutes" to help prepare him for the end of whatever it is we are doing.

So, this morning as I was in the process of saying my goodbye, Ike and I were having a snuggle moment on the couch and he grabs my arm and taps on the face of my watch and says, "Mommy! Five more minutes with me, then you go to work."

I just can't get enough of him!!!

Ms Terry

Friday, June 27, 2008

This blog would be incomplete if I didn't do a posting to mention Ms Terry, Ike's infant teacher. He spent 5 days a week with her for the last 15+ mos and to say they are close is an understatement. I always told Terry that she was Ike's second Mom and I really believe that. For those anti-daycare, I am sure you think I am a horrible mother but, for us as working parents she was our lifesaver. Ms Terry retired from the daycare world to work at her church which is a much less physically demanding day for her and we are happy for her but sad not to see her face around school. We are definitely going to keep up with her as she is part of our family.

Ike moved into the "Waddler Room" this week and he has made an easy transition and seems to be loving his new surroundings just across the hall from the baby room. It is much more structured and they have group meals and they all nap at the same time on their cots.

Have you looked in your pantry yet?

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Recently, I discovered Ike's applesauce was in #7 containers and yogurts were in #6!

AHHH!

AVOID = #3, #6 & #7

More info here

Plastic Safety - PLEASE READ

Friday, April 18, 2008

About 2 weeks ago, the Today Show's Dr. Nancy Synderman tackled the plastic safety issue with a report that encouraged viewers to avoid using certain plastics. Click here to see the 4/8 interview and follow-up 4/10 interview. This interview got my attention because of the ever present role of plastic in baby bottles and sippy cups in my life and the lives of my friends and family. She makes the point that you can't go back on what is done but now is the time to change our habits! There are safer alternatives but they take a little research - see chart above and this blog has cool info.

The point of her interviews is that consumers should avoid Bisphenol A, Ployvinyl chloride (PVC), Polystyrene (PS) and polycarbonate containers (i.e. Nalgene bottles!). In the 4/10 interview, Dr. Snyderman did clarify that PVC and PS do not contain Bisphenol A. But, she added that PVC and PS contain "other chemicals like polyvinyl chloride that we know in rat studies can be linked to cancers and other problems." She suggested that consumers with questions about plastic safety check http://www.iatp.org/ which she described as an "independent organization."

So please, be smart! Take the time to go through your pantry, cupboards and refridgerator to check your plastics.

All you need to remember =

AVOID 3, 6, 7 and do not microwave or dishwash plastic!
Click on the image above for the Safe Plastics Guide.

A Story for Parents

Thursday, November 15, 2007

My friend, Whitney, sent this article around from our local town paper, The Guilford Courier, and I think it is so spot-on that I wanted to share it with others on my blog. With the hustle bustle of the holiday season coming up, I think this is a good lesson/reminder for all of us who go, go, go all the time and sometimes forget to savor the moment.