Surviving

It's been rough. I won't lie. Having 2 sick kids takes a lot out of you. Bear wakes constantly at night and is super tired and cranky during the day. She also has these nice canker sores which she complains about constantly and keeps her from eating. Chipmunk has trouble staying asleep and has trouble eating with his stuffy nose (along with his bouts of crying for hours). Both of them have had fits of coughing and our humidifier has been on constantly. Gratefully there are no fevers...just a lot of snot.

But we're surviving...snot and all.

On the other hand, I've been super industrious. Well, some women shop when they're having a rough time. I clean. I don't just vacuum and wash dishes. I rearrange furniture and scrub grout between tiles with old toothbrushes.

I should be sleeping though...and perhaps I shouldn't be moving furniture either.

Numbers

30 - the number of minutes it takes to pack 2 kids into the car

19 - the number of times I told Bear to stop waking up her brother this morning

17 - the number of diapers I changed yesterday

9 - the number of times Chipmunk woke up out of a sound nap suddenly, usually from snorting (stuffy nose)

8 - the number of times Bear lost Sonja and ran through the house screaming for her

6 - the number of dirty outfits I changed yesterday

5 - the number of hours Chipmunk was up last night crying

4 - the number of Curious George episodes I had to watch today

3 - the number of hours of sleep I got last night(in 3 different parts)

2 - the number of kids in this house with colds involving stuffy noses

1 - the number of tired moms in this house

One Down, Two to Go

When I was a first time parent with Bear, I spent most of the first month feeling like I was doing something wrong. Actually, I spent most of the first year feeling like I was doing something wrong. Seasoned parents would tell me that "3 months" was the magic number. "Just wait 3 months," they said, "it'll seem much better then." Of course it was hard for me to imagine with a screaming one month old day in and day out. When 3 months rolled around, it was like magic...the colicky symptoms went away, a better schedule was established and I felt much more at ease about being a parent.

I find that having experienced the dramatic difference of 3 months, I've been impatiently waiting for Chipmunk to hit that point. I find myself muttering things like, "only 8 more weeks to go" or "one month down, two more to go." Now that Chipmunk has hit the 1 month mark though, I realize that 4 weeks came and went much quicker than I expected.

So perhaps I should stop looking forward to "3 months" and just enjoy "right now" because I'm afraid I'm going to miss out on something special...like the joy of having a newborn...

Whoa Mama!

I've read that newborns are supposed to gain on average an ounce a day. Sixteen days ago Chipmunk was 8 pounds which was 13 ounces less than his birth weight. Today he weighed in at 9 pounds 8 ounces! That's 24 ounces in 16 days! The doctor took a look at the chart and said "Whoa Mama, what have you been feeding this boy?"

Suffice it to say I'm not too worried about his weight anymore...however I am concerned about his feeding habits. When you're feeding a child every two hours it wears you down after a while. I hope he grows out of this growth spurt soon and slows down the frequency of his feedings. I really do need longer intervals of sleep. I think 20 minutes at a time just isn't healthy.

Entertaining ourselves

When you're sleep deprived, you've got to entertain yourself somehow.



Thanks, Matt, for making me laugh.

Falling Asleep Standing

I took a Humanities class during my freshman year of college where the most interesting part of the class was seeing how many people were sleeping through the lecture the morning after a paper was due. One time, there was this poor soul who obviously ran to class to turn the paper in time, was too late to get an actual seat, ended up having to sit on the steps of the lecture hall, where he promptly fell asleep and snored loudly (to the amusement of those sitting around him) throughout the hour and a half of lecture.

Ah, sleep...so very necessary...yet so fleeting when you've got a newborn.

This time around I've been trying harder to get rest when I can...especially with our little Chipmunk who has daytime and nightime reversed...so he's up all night, and come morning, up rises Bear who needs my attention as well. So my sleep has been short and sporadic. I think if I had to sit through a Humanities lecture right now, I'd be the one snoring.

Granted, Chipmunk is more predictable since he's our second kid...we're able to read him better than we could as new parents with Bear...so it's not as frustrating...just more sleep depriving. I'm amazed that Matt can get up to go to work at 6:30 in the morning after a night of sleeping in a chair with Chipmunk in his lap.

So, I'm afraid that one of these days I'll catch myself falling asleep while standing. Now that would be something to see.

All About Personality...

Chipmunk had his follow up appointment with the doctor today. As I feared, he hasn't really been gaining any weight. I know, he was 8 pounds 13 ounces when he was born, which is quite sizable, but when we left he weighed just 8 pounds. Babies do lose weight during those first few days...but they're not supposed to lose that much.

So today he weighed 8 pounds...still. I was a little disappointed. I felt that perhaps I wasn't feeding him well enough...

So the doctor asked me a ton of questions...turns out he is eating...he just likes to take his merry, sweet time. For example, last night he ate for about an hour and a half straight. He drank the whole time, just very...very...slowly.

The doctor said that he was alert, well-hydrated and probably gaining weight (assuming he lost some weight after we left the hospital, too)...his personality was just too mellow and easy-going to be a vigorous eater.

Too mellow and easy-going to eat? Too lazy to eat, perhaps. It's so opposite from Bear's first few days who was constantly hungry and ate too quickly.

Different personalities? I guess we'll soon find out.

Rare Moment

Bear is fast asleep.

Chipmunk is fast asleep.

Matt is fast asleep.

It's 4:30 in the afternoon.

I'm awake watching chick flicks.

I think this is going to be a rare moment, indeed.

Our Hungry Chipmunk

Just wanted to update with some pictures of our little "chipmunk."



He was a big boy when he was born. He continues to amaze us with his superior eating abilities. He actively eats for an hour and then asks for more. I just don't have enough for him. He practically eats another meal right afterwards of what is supposed to be "supplemental" formula.

Here's Bear with her brother.



She came to the hospital everyday...ran into the room, wouldn't say hi to mom or dad, but would run over to her brother and yell out, "Hi Baby!" Ever since the chipmunk came home, she's been hugging and kissing him, patting his head and trying to tickle him.

Here's our family of four:



Whoa. Four. That's going to take some getting used to.

Turkey is done... (by padawanlee)

Just an update for everyone. Our newest member of the family came out healthy and well done today. He was born at 12:30pm at 8 lbs 13 oz and 20 inches long. Both mom and baby are resting and doing well in the hospital, mom is recovering well from the delivery and dad is happy that everyone is well and he is adjusting to being a parent of a newborn again. There will be no more tickets for sale for the traveling mommy show anymore but a new attraction will be soon taking its place. More updates and pictures to follow once we settle down.

Thank you all for your support, prayers, and words of encouragement over the past few months as God has blessed our family with this new baby boy.

Will Write Again Soon

One year for Thanksgiving I remember shopping for turkeys and considering the number of people we decided to get a 10 pound turkey. Comparatively, it's a small turkey.

I apparently have a small turkey inside me. He's estimated to be 9 pounds (give or take a pound) and he's stubbornly hanging out in the wrong position.

No, I don't know how this baby turned out to be 9 pounds. It was quite a shock for Matt and myself (Bear was only 7 lbs).

Apparently our turkey is done baking. He's being removed from the oven tomorrow at noon.

Will write again soon.

Welcome to the Freak Show...

You ever have the feeling that wherever you go people are looking at you funny?

Everywhere I go these days I feel like that. I feel like a freak show.

It's interesting to see people's reactions. Some people smile. Some people shake their heads. Some people have a pained expression on their face. Some try to discreetly point me out as they whisper to their companions. Some have the courage to even speak to me.

"You just have one in there, right?"

"Wow, you must be due soon!"

"You look like you're ready to pop!"

That's me. A one-woman freak show. Better get your tickets soon, the show will hopefully be ending shortly.

Eat Hot Dog? (by padawanlee)

I wonder when kids actually learn to read. Yesterday we went to Costco to pick up some supplies before baby #2's arrival and as we pulled into the parking lot Bear commented from the backseat "eat dinner, hot dog". Carina and I looked at each other with a befuddled look comprehending what Bear just said. One, we didn't mention hot dogs at all during the car trip and second, the Costco we were at was not the usual one we shop at. So either Baby Bear can read signs now or she had a strange craving for a hot dog... what do you think?

Bear is Swedish, Yah?

It's fun to ask Bear questions these days. She actually answers. I remember a couple of years ago when I'd be walking through the grocery store and asking Bear questions like, "Should we have pork or beef?" and the most of a reaction I'd get from her was a coo or a smile. I do realize that I talked to myself a lot those first few months of parenthood.

As one who is not well-versed in the art of baby talk, I tend to talk to Bear like she's an adult. Yesterday I caught myself telling her, "You really need to work on your organizational skills." Ha ha...like that's going to happen any time soon (as I groan and pick up a billion toys off the floor while I'm practically 9 months pregnant).

It's just nice to hear an actual response to my questions when I ask them now.

The only thing I'm a little puzzled about is how my toddler came to respond to questions with "Yah" instead of "Yes." She used to use the latter (and I love how she emphatically nods her head at the same time). Recently, she's decided to answer questions affirmatively with "Yah."

Last week a friend came over and asked Bear, "Are you going to be a good big sister to the baby?" Bear bobbed her head up and down a few times and said, "Yah!"

Later in the week I asked her, "Bear do you want an apple?" She responded, "eat appoh(apple), yah!"

Apparently, Bear is becoming European.

A Little Goodbye

If I wasn't 38 weeks pregnant and having irregular contractions, I'd probably be making my way up to Nor Cal right about now.

When I was pregnant with Bear, one of my hopes was that she would get to meet her great great grandma (or "big big ma ma" as she called her)...I just thought, "how neat would it be for all five generations to be together in one room...how precious it would be." So they met, and although Bear probably won't remember...and her great great grandma wasn't even sure who we all were...it was still a sweet moment where we could capture the 5 generations in a photo op.

About an hour ago I heard the news that my kun halmoni passed away. I wish I could be there to say goodbye...Instead this will have to do.



We'll miss you kun halmoni and "big big ma ma."

Hard, Easy, Hard, Easy...

No, I'm not writing about eggs...

A couple nights ago a father of four told me that in his experience (and also comparing with some other parents that he knew) the first child is always hard, the second is easier (emphasis on "er"), the third is again hard, and then the fourth is easy.

I thought about that for a while and then I wondered, "Is Bear hard or easy to raise?" We know the answer is "hard" but apparently appearances can be deceiving. We've heard way too often about how Bear seems so easy...ha ha ha...that's funny.

But if Bear is an easy child to raise and we've just been overdramatizing everything in our heads, then does that mean we are going to give birth to a little hellraiser in a couple of weeks? I don't know if we are ready for that.

Two Years and a Thank You

I realized the other day that our blog is coming upon 2 years now...and what once started as a place I could just express myself while being trapped at home with a newborn has now become a glimpse into the world that we like to call "our family."

First off, just wanted to send out a little "thanks" to all of you readers out there whoever you are. Whether you are friend, family or friends of the friends and family, we appreciate your visit to our humble little site that mostly revolves around one silly little girl.

Just for fun, I thought I'd provide links to some of our favorite moments in the past 2 years...

Why Bear cried during bathtime (9-11-2007)
Why you should never leave a child unattended with yogurt (4-17-07)
Why Matt wonders where his genes went (3-2-07)
Why Daddy was saying "Doh"(12-22-06)
Why 11 month olds shouldn't play with fruit(11-12-06)
How Kids pick things up so easily when you're not there(7-9-06)

Stay tuned...I'm quite sure more stories and laughs are to come.

Christmas Wrap-Up

Sometimes I wonder if Bear will remember any of these moments. My earliest memory was when I was 3 years old and my sister was born...Perhaps it's ingrained in my memory because it was such a happy (er...traumatic) moment in my life. My brother once recalled a moment when he was 2. I've heard that (although rare) some people actually remember being in their cribs watching their mobiles. Spooky. Whatever the case may be, I still wonder how much Bear is impacted by all of these moments in her life.

Christmas

We spent Christmas with Matt's family in Sacramento this year. It was nice. Bear had a great time eating and of course, opening presents (Abre Peh-sent?). As I've been heading towards immobility, it was nice having lots of family around to care for and entertain Bear. Being as inquisitive as she is, Bear followed Grandma and Grandpa around constantly asking, "What doing?"

After Christmas

For Bear's birthday we headed West and visited my side of the family. Bear continued to eat and open presents. We went to this pizza place in Berkeley called Zachary's. For those of you who have never been, their pizza is a serious deep dish pizza. I could only manage one slice. Bear meanwhile ate about half a salad and almost 2 pieces of pizza. Amazing.

Fun Being 2

Bear rode a carousel for the first time. I couldn't tell if she was enjoying it while she was riding it, but after she got off she promptly told me "Dun (Fun)."

I think throughout our week in Nor Cal, I enjoyed most watching Bear take in all of her surroundings. We took walks in Sacramento where she was fascinated with leaves and rocks and grass. Visiting her Great Grandma she enjoyed opening all the cabinets and finding "treasures" here and there. Even when it was just so cold Bear was running around in her blue parka on the grass or she was watching the rainfall. We even had an engrossing conversation about "poo" when she asked about the brown turd on the car window (B: Bir poo poo? Me: Yes, all animals poo poo. [later in the conversation] B: Tanta poo poo? Me: Does Santa poo poo? Uh, I don't know.).



Going Home

This year we didn't have to stuff a 4 foot pink pony into our car...but if anyone looked in our trunk they would have thought that we were building an altar for Dora the Explorer (Dora clothes, Dora games, Dora books, Dora bandages?). I guess brand marketing worked on this family.

After a week Matt and I were exhausted...on the other hand, Bear was revved up and even more of a conversationalist than when we arrived. Seven hours (of toddler conversation) later we arrived home and rang in the New Year by falling asleep.

Ah, good times.


Bear's 1st Christmas Gift of 2007 from her mom and dad

Why I Can't Count...

Someone asked me about a month ago how far along I was in this pregnancy. I thought about it, but was really puzzled because I had absolutely no clue. I just answered, "I don't know...somewhere in the 3rd trimester, I think?"

I just can't count the weeks this time around. I actually signed up at Babycenter for weekly emails to tell me how far along I am. Otherwise, I have to grab others who are pregnant (and counting) so I can somehow figure out where I am compared to them.

Honestly there's a lot of things I don't know about this pregnancy. We still don't know the gender of the baby (not without lack of trying). I haven't really read any books to prepare for this baby. I don't even know if we have everything we need for this baby. Perhaps I should at least pack my bag for the hospital.

Sometimes I feel as if I should have more anxiety than I presently do...especially since so many people give me a nervous look and say, "You're due in February? I don't think you're going to make it to February." And yet, I look at the toys spilled all over our floor and I feel more compelled to get that cleaned up rather than think about the future (which is quickly approaching).

So I will just enjoy sitting with Bear and watch her take in the world around her. She's even started counting objects on her own (one, two, fee, door, dive, tix, eben, eight, nine, twendy!) Perhaps I'll have her keep track of this pregnancy for me.

The Best Day of the Year?

I overheard Matt explaining to Bear this morning that today (Jan 1st) is the "best day of the year." He said, "you can watch football all day!" Bear just responded by asking for more juice.

My only thought though is what happened to the names of all the beloved bowl games? Seriously, what is a "Chick-Fil-A" Bowl? Or even better..."Capital One" Bowl? Okay, so I'm not going to watch any of these bowl games, but I just had to ask.