Our first Christmas

So since we are traveling for Christmas we decided to celebrate our family Christmas early so that Lydia could enjoy her new found love. Her Keyboard, or song maker as she calls it. We just got Seth a little elephant we could attach to just about anything and he loves it. He tries to put it in his mouth all the time, something I am not used to. Lydia never put stuff in her mouth. Seth, on the other hand, puts whatever he can towards his mouth. We had a great time. I got Joel some new clothes because he likes to wear stuff from high school/college. Well we have struggled these past few months. I have been sick for about 2 months now. First with RSV, and then thrush, and now I have a cold again. Lydia has had a head cold and this morning she had a touch of the flu. Seth also has had thrush and now a head cold. It is interesting how many times you can wipe his nose in one day. Lydia does a good job of wiping her own nose. But overall we have had a great last few months.

Vows and some cute pictures of the kiddos

So on Sunday along with 180 other couples from our church we renewed our vows. It is funny how sometimes you miss out on the words that you repeat after the pastor who is telling you to repeat after me. There was so many great promises in the vows that Pastor Brad spoke on Sunday that it would take way to long to even share them all. So I will leave you with Submission is the biggest part a women can play in a husband/wife relationship and I am happy to submit to my wonderful husband. It was also a fun time to celebrat.e at the reception afterward. Here are some pictures from the evening

Big boy 4 months old

So yesterday I took Seth for his 4 month checkup and he is doing amazing. He holds his head up well and grabs for stuff now. He weighs 13 pounds which is a pound heavier than Lydia weighed at that age. He is 26 and a half inches long which almost 2 inches longer than Lydia at age. His head circumference was was 15 inches which is small for a baby at 4 months. But the doctor said that wasn't to surprising. He is overall a very healthy boy. I am so thankful to not have to worry about him eating and getting enough nutrition like I did/do with Lydia. Lydia is almost fully potty trained we still have our moments of accidents but with every passing day she does great. Today was a little test for me and how prepared I was for an accident. I found out not very prepared. We had a busy morning and took Joel to the doctors for some inflammation on his lips and then ran to get diapers and then to subway to get food. While we were sitting there Lydia said potty mommy so as I went to get her she went potty all over the chair (Sorry subway I cleaned it up). SO normally I would have had a clean pair of pants and underwear in our bag, but in this case I only had clean underwear. The subway is in walmart so I just decided to go get her one of the cheapest pair of pants I could find, and so I am looking and wouldn't you know they don't sell 2T pants only 24 month pants which are to short on her. After much frustration I finally resulted to buying her 3T which are huge on her. So the moral of the story check your bag 2 or 3 times to make sure you have a change of clothes for your 2 year old potty training toddler. She has been surprising us a lot lately. She finally has learned some of her colors. She also can kind of count she says 1,2,3 and then it becomes 9 so we are trying get to remember the numbers in between. I have been recently diagnosed with RSV but I am finally thankful that a doctor got me some help. I have been sick for almost 2 months now and I have been to the doctor a couple of times to figure out what was wrong with me because I sounded like I was going to die every time I coughed. Turns out I was really sick and I mean really sick. RSV is something you only see in small children and rarely in adults so no one I guess thought to look for it, except for our pediatrician. So I am finally getting some relief for this nasty cold. Joel, continues to work very hard for his family. He and I have taken on the birth of our small group so that has been exciting. Joel has also been struggling with some lip stuff. His lips have been very inflamed for almost 3 weeks. They would crack open and bleed and he has just been plan miserable with them. So we saw a doctor today about them and got some medicine to help them heal and hopefully he will be back to normal soon. But overall we are a healthy family and we are counting down the days till we see our families again over the Christmas Holidays.

Videos

Here you go Mom, since I know that this is the only way you can see videos. He loves to play with his hands and feet.

Thanksgiving

We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving. It was Seth's first Thanksgiving and so we are thankful that God brought him into our lives and we love him. Lydia grows by leaps and bounds. She likes to sing and dance and her most recent love is BOOKS. She can't get enough of them. So when I asked her what she was thankful for she went and go this book called Who is in the Meadow? I found this book at the library and she loves it. So I am thankful for her love of books. Her new accomplishments include mastering the potty. We have moved her up to the big girl potty with a seat on top and now she won't use the one on the floor. It has been amazing to have Joel home for the last few days. He is such a great husband so loving and selfless. I did decide to master the Black Friday sales. I will probably most likely not do it again, especially by myself. It was crazy if you want the whole story you will have to ask. We enjoyed a fun meal with our good friends the Mason's. They have been our family away from our family since we have moved here. They mean so much to us. So thank you Mason's for once again taking us in and loving on us. it was an overall great day.

Love playing

One thing I really enjoy watching is Lydia and how she interacts with her baby Seth as she calls him. We tried putting Seth in the excersaucer the other day but since he still doesn't have complete control over his head it wasn't really a good idea so it was short lived but we managed to catch some pictures of him and Lydia and how he really likes being near Lydia.

Another funny conversation with Lydia

So on our way home tonight from Walmart, Lydia said candy mommy?? I said yes Lydia when we get home you can have candy just remind mommy when we get there. So we got home and sure enough she says Candy mommy so I gave her a lolli-pop and then all of the sudden she says to Me, Mommy what doing? and I told her and then she said Mommy what doing? So once again I told her what I was doing and then again she said Mommy what doing? And I said Lydia what are you doing and she said in a very big and I mean very big smile " I HAVE CANDY" and then proceeded to dance around the house saying I HAVE CANDY!!! IT was so funny! She didn't care what I was doing she just wanted to tell me that she had candy!! 2 year olds got to love them!!

Cooing

Seth's new thing is cooing and smiling. It takes a lot longer to feed him now because he would rather talk to me and smile than eat. He loves to lay on his changing table and just talk but only in his diaper once I dress him the smiling and cooing goes away. IT is so funny!!

A little update

Well things as usual are busy in the Leineweber house. Things that have been happening here are: Lydia is potty training. She is doing an amazing job. She sometimes will go by herself with out me asking her, but I always know when she goes because she can't fully pull her pants down by herself. So she yells from the bathroom "PANTS DOWN MOMMY!!" Sometimes I don't always make it in time and she accidentally goes on the tip of her pants so I am learning to be quick. The only problem is, is that when I am nursing it is hard to get to her. But she has transitioned well. She has learned the difference in shapes and we are still working on what color is what. For someone who loves to color and play with play doh she doesn't seem to grasp colors very well. Her favorite things to do are play with her ponies and take a walk and pick up leaves. This past weekend we got to go trick or treating with our good friends Adam and Tara and she loves Abby. Seth is smiling real big now, and occasionally I can get him to coo back at me, it is now more common than not. I feel as if time has flown by with him as he is already 3 months old. My parents stopped in for a very quick trip this past Sunday. They were driving by after picking up a truck they bought in Texas. So my dad was able to meet his newest grandson. Seth loved him and give him lots of big smiles. It must be my dads low soothing voice I feel as if all babies love my dad. IT was great to see you mom and dad. Joel continues to be busy working at AIG and is still loving his job! He comes home to a house of chaos but we love seeing him when he gets here. Lydia always greets him with DADDY HOME!! Joel and I will be taking the birth in our small group probably by the end of this month so that will be interesting! Me, I am continuing to be a stay at home mom, and learning a lot about my selfish heart. My big growing experience has been being patient with Lydia as she hits the terrible 2 stage. I have discovered that when she is hungry she gets pretty grumpy! Potty training for me has been learning to give lots of Praise and try not to be impatient when she fails. I love being a mom and I am very fulfilled in doing it. As we hit full speed ahead into the holidays we continue to be a very busy family.

Butterfly

So we took Lydia and Seth trick or treating with our friends Adam and Tara. She was a butterfly and Seth was a dinosaur. So I put Seth in the car to head over to Tara's house and then I put Lydia in and she looked over him and said FROG. She mistook her baby brother dinosaur for a FROG. But as the evening when on every one kept saying look at the cute frog. Well I don't have a picture of Seth with his outfit yet, but I do have one of Lydia.

Sister and Brother

This is what I found Lydia doing with Seth this morning when I ran to the bathroom.

Funny Conversation

Yesterday, Lydia was having a very pitiful day and I was trying to make her realize what she was doing and I finally I said Lydia, do you need a time out on your bed for your attitude and she said YESSSSSSSSSSS!! So funny!

I sigh of happiness

Well today makes the last day I will spend here in North Carolina with Melinda. She is adjusting well to being a mom. You can definitely see the mommy sparkle in her eye. I have however, missed Joel and Lydia while I have been here and I will be happy to be reunited with them tomorrow morning. Although, very sad to leave here with out my sister and my great new little niece. Sometimes it makes me overwhelmingly sad to not be close to any of my family and oh how my heart aches to be near them, but in this I also know that Gods will and timing is perfect. It makes my time with them oh so sweet. I wish sometimes that the time in between seeing them was shorter, but then I think maybe I wouldn't be so grateful to see them and just take it for granted. But I am sighing in happiness because God has brought into this world another sweet healthy baby to some very awesome parents. So to you Steve and Melinda I say Congratulations on a beautiful, precious baby girl, and I am very sad that it will seem like forever, until I see you and her again. Thank you for the opportunity I have had to meet Chloe and for serving you and welcoming your new baby girl into your home. I can't wait till I see you again soon, and hope that Chloe will continually grow beautiful and big.

Family pictures

Our friend Lauren took these pictures. Thanks Lauren!!

9 weeks

It is amazing how quick time has flown by. I haven't been on here in a while to post on our lives. SO here is a quick update. Seth still is rolling over, the doctor told us that he was probably doing it on accident, but it seems to me that he is doing it on purpose. He is a lot bigger than Lydia ever was at this age. He is smiling a lot now and starting to coo at us as well. I feel like I have finally adjusted to life with 2 kids. Lydia continues to be an awesome joy to me. She is saying so much more now. She tries very hard to do stuff herself and when she does she says "I got it." She also has begun to answer her own question. For instance She says to me mommy watch George and then she says SURE. So funny. We also had our pictures taken by our very good friend Lauren and when i get them I will post some pictures. In other news my sister, Melinda had her baby. Congrats to you guys. We love you!!

Lydia says funny things

So today we gave Lydia a vanilla oreo and what she decided to do was eat the frosting on the inside and not the outer cookie. So she comes into the kitchen asking us for another cookie and we say to her you must eat the rest of your cookie before you can have another one. So she goes back in and gets the cookie and starts to eat and gets distracted by something else and woosh sadie sweeps in and takes the cookie off her hands, (we don't let sadie do that). So we hear Lydia COOKIE COOKIE in a very sad voice and Joel grabs the rest of the cookie that sadie didn't get and gives it to Lydia and I said she can have another cookie, so he gets her another cookie and she gives him the leftover half from the last cookie and says TRASH TRASH YEAH!!! While throwing her cookie into the trash!!!

6 weeks

We are thankful for the 6 weeks we have had with Seth. Here are some recent photos of him.

Conversation with Lydia

Me: Choking on my drink Lydia: Mommy alright Alright? Me still choking Lydia: Mommy ALRIGHT?? Me: finally yes Lydia I am!!

5 weeks old

So this past Friday we took Seth for his 1 month appointment. He was 9 pounds 3 ounces and 22 inches long!! MY MY what a big boy. I think about how ironic this is because Lydia barely gained a pound a her one month appointment. So I am thankful that he is eating well and gaining some good weight. The doctor said he looked amazing. Thank you Lord so much for for a strong, Healthy baby. Lydia also was at the doctor with Seth and the doctor loves to hang out with her because she isn't scared of him anymore she likes to talk to him even though he can't really understand what she is saying. So Joel made it home and back with us and I am so thankful for him and his help. After flying a red eye home Thursday night he got home eat breakfast and took a shower and then headed of to the doctors with me for Seth's one month and my dentist appointment. He is a big trooper. I can't believe how quickly the time has flown bye with Seth. I hope to remember the little moments with him and Lydia!! Lydia's new thing is that she loves to sing. She makes up her own little songs and I will often hear her in her room playing singing about the toy she is playing with. When we take our evening walk she sings about the flowers and the dogs and mommy and daddy. We love to hear her do this because here is for hoping she will have some musical ability, but if not we will help her discover her hobby one day.

Taking for Granted

Well starting this past Monday I have been by myself with the 2 little munchkins. I love them very much, but I must admit it has been a little harder than I expected. I have realized how much I take Joel for granted. I was thinking today when the kids napped of all the stuff he does. Here is a small list, taking out the trash, cleaning the toys up after Lydia goes to bed, cleans dinner up after we are done, goes outside with Lydia while I take a rest and fold and put away laundry, and this is a big one has conversation with me at night as to not make me bored while he works. So I am so thankful for him. He is in Oregon right now at a Conference and we can't wait for Friday when he comes back. I have been thankful for the people who have tried to make my time a little easier. So continue to pray for me as we make it through one more day and 2 nights waiting for Joel to come home.

Lydia's is definitely 2

We celebrated Lydia's birthday today with our very good friends Adam and Tara and Lee and Candace. Lydia absolutely loves Abby and Isabel and they came over to celebrate her birthday too. Here are some pictures to enjoy!!

Brother and Sister

So if I didn't know any better I'd say they were brother and sister. I found this picture of Lydia and saw Seth laying like this in his crib and thought I would share it on here.

Happy Anniversary Joel

But most of all that we celebrate our 5 year anniversary today. I have loved being married to Joel. He has taught me so much about marriage and life and I couldn't ask for a better husband. I LOVE YOU Joel!!!

Happy Birthday Lydia

Wow, how time flies. Today is Lydia's 2nd birthday. She has been a great blessing to us. Each day I seem to take for granted the time I have with her, but I have learned to try to stop and take in every moment because she won't always be with us. So happy birthday Lydia

Happy Birthday PA

Well today of many days is an eventful day for us. But right now I want to say Happy Birthday to Joel's dad. His parents spent 10 days with us to help me out after Seth was born. They were a great help. We were happy that his dad got a clean bill of health and hopefully will have many more years to get to know his grand kids. So happy birthday dad!!!

Rolling over

Yup thats right, Seth rolled over at 13 days old. He did it 4 times in a row, but I only caught it once on video. So here you go.

1 week

It is amazing how quickly time goes by. It is also amazing how you just want to be done being pregnant wishing to meet the little baby that is rolling and kicking and sticking limbs out of your stomach and wondering what in the world they are doing in there. I have been thinking about these things as it has already been a week and a couple of days since Seth was born and wishing I could still feel him moving inside, because I know that how quickly he will turn 1 and then 2. I know this because I look at my soon to be 2 year old little munchkin and wonder where in the world time has gone. She has blessed my life so much and I have loved every minute of having her in my life. I got the chance to take some pictures of Lydia and Seth together hoping to catch as many moments of the 2 of them together while I could hoping that time could almost slow down. But I need to focus on the fact that we are raising them to shoot them out of our quiver. On a side note. Joel's parents have been here and have been extremely helpful. Today we celebrate his mom's birthday so HAPPY BIRTHDAY NANA and we love you!!

Baby Seth

Well I have finally found the time to blog. I just wanted to let you all know that Seth Nathan was born Aug 4 at 6 pounds 6 ounces and he was 19 inches long. I was really blessed with a good labor and delivery. I am so grateful for the nurses that I had in the hospital they were amazing and made my time there very pleasant. A little about Seth. He was born 3 weeks early so he has been struggling with jaundice a very common thing in early babies. He had to stay an extra night in the hospital but he is improving and doing well. He is a great eater and Lydia loves him very much. Her favorite thing to do is to go to his bed and look in and rub his head. She will occasionally want to hold him, but only for a few minutes. Her transition with us has been a little trying but she is coming around. She also is getting her 2 year molars in so she is a little tired and fussy, but overall adjusting well. A big thanks to my mom and sisters for coming and helping me out. Allyson, my niece, got to come as well and she was a big help entertaining Lydia. So Allyson will forever be known as Alice.