Scarlett's First Food.

Scarlett officially started solid foods at 5 months old.  She seemed to really enjoy it too:-)  Bentley took one bite at 4 months and was pretty much over it.  I didn't start him on solids again until 6 months and we skipped the whole rice cereal thing.  I'm proud of my little girl, she did so well!!..

I'm ready Mommy!!

Big brother making sure there's room in those cheeks♥

Gimme some of that!!

1st taste

And she wanted some more:-)

Yummy!!

♥, The Happy Wife

Where Did All The Mommies Go?

“Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs... since the payment is pure love."-Mildred B. Vermont

Bentley has been going to Gymboree Play and Music classes since he was 5 months old.  He absolutely loves it!!

A few memorable moments♥

 This is where, along with my help of course, he was encouraged and excelled very quickly at sitting up, crawling, walking, counting, and playing nicely with others:) It is the perfect mommy and me environment for him, with amazing instructors at each level.  Once we had Scarlett we were unable to attend for a few months and today was our first day back.  Much to my surprise, this Gymboree, or at least the new level that Bentley is in, has turned into a  "Nanny and Me" of some sorts.  I found this out as I was trying to console Bentley after a fall and another woman comes over, almost in an attempt to reassure me that this child would be OK, and to help me. As I look at her questioningly, she asks if I am his mother."Yes", I reply. After all, this is a mommy and me class. She looks very surprised and begins to point out that most of the woman in here are nannies.  Now, the one thing I've always loved about Gymboree was the chance to communicate with other mom's that are going through the same child raising  joys and challenges as myself, so needless to say I am a little disappointed to see that it has sort of evolved into a nanny play date.  I also cannot believe that someone would be so surprised that a mommy is enjoying some daytime playtime with her own child.  I have nothing against nannies, and do realize everyone has different circumstances surrounding their decisions to use a nanny, but my husband and I made the decision that I would raise my own children, and wouldn't miss these wonderful precious moments where they are learning, playing and growing right before our very eyes.  I would also hate to think that the nanny is now the norm, and that it is unusual for a mommy to be at a mommy and me playgym of all places!! But that was exactly the case at this moment.
Anyways, we will still continue to attend Gymboree because this is our special time together just mother and son, and I do love it, in fact I think its amazing.   I just signed Scarlett up as well and am hoping to see more mothers in the infant class that can share with me the pure joy of being our babies' mommy's and relating to those whom have also figured out a way to be involved in their little ones' lives♥

♥, The Happy Wife

2nd Time Mommy, 1st Time Marathoner...In The Works;)

After spending the last 3 years or so of my life pregnant and caring for newborn babies, I figured it was time to do at least one small thing for myself.  Or should I say, a rather large thing.  Run my first 1/2 marathon just 6 months after having a baby and beginning training 4 months after said baby's birth. I'm also lucky enough to have a husband that pretty much shares every passion and goal that I have in my life, so he is also running his 1st 1/2 marathon with me, as well as my Dad.  My Dad has run his share of marathons so he set us up with a quick training program to complete in about 2 months, basically starting at 3 miles, increasing a mile a week until we reach 13.1 the day of the marathon.  I should also mention that I couldn't stand running before, and never worked out a single day while pregnant. Are you kidding me?? Getting my pregnant self in and out of a car was workout enough!! All joking aside though, I have actually begun to really enjoy running and the idea of forcing myself to do something that I don't exactly love, just for the end result, an astounding sense of accomplishment!  After all, why call it a goal if it's that easy to obtain?  So, in the midst of juggling a newborn, toddler, wifey-hood and homemaker-ness, I will continue on training for my very 1st San Diego Rock N Roll 1/2 Marathon...wish me luck;-)

More Wine and Less Whine

"Wine makes daily living easier, less hurried, with fewer tensions and more tolerance." -Benjamin Franklin

In the recent months, we have taken our love of wine to a whole new level with the discovery of the "wine sipping playdate". This all started when Andy and I joined the Ponte wine club in Temecula a few years back and eventually switched over to Wilson Creek. We would soon find out what a family friendly winery this Wilson Creek truly was, where you are as likely to see a baby in a bjorn, as you are to see a bottle of wine. They even provide parents and children with a playground.  Life doesn't get much better than this for the wine loving mommy's and daddy's out there:) Now that we've moved to San Diego, we have also found that wine country is the exact halfway point for us and the friends and family we left behind.  The more often we get to meet up with Bentley's cousins and our friends, the happier we all are, therefore more wine for the parents = less whine from the children♥

I had to start with an old school pic of Andy and I on our first wine tasting date in Temecula♥ Little did we know we'd married and be bringing our little ones here in just a few short years.

A random assortment of playdate memories♥

Bentley 8 months old at Wilson Creek

He LOVES his cousin Gavie

 Bentley and his GF Olivia

This kid is a barrel of laughs!

Cousins having fun

Scarlett enjoying her surroundings

With her Auntie Marisa♥

The boys hanging out at the creek

♥

This was Scarlett's first time meeting her Auntie B, 2 weeks old, at Wilson Creek:-)

Toddler Love

An adoring cousin

Disclaimer- Our wine tasting is always done responsibly♥

♥, The Happy Wife

Bathing Baby♥

Giving your new baby a bath is such a fun and special time.  It can also be a great way for you, or your other child in this case, to bond with baby:)  Putting them in a warm tub of water, and watching them soak and splash while trying to figure out what this new liquid substance is and why it is so much fun to hang out in, is all a part of the experience.  The sweetest thing about Scarlett's bath time right now is that Bentley wants so badly to wash her.  He jumps all over my lap just to grab the washcloth and clean his baby sister.  It is truly the most precious thing to watch one baby give another baby a bath♥ He loves his sister so much, and it's so obvious. Scarlett enjoyed this, she thought he was just playing with her and had the cutest little grin on the entire time.
Here are some of these bath time moments.

Smiles♥♥

B trying to get in on the action

This is Bentley washing her:)

scrub scrub scrub!

We left the shampooing for Mommy!

All clean!! Thank you big brother!

Muah!

♥, The Happy Wife

No Sleep In Sight.

As Scarlett turns 4 months old today I'm reflecting back on Bentley at this age and remembering that we had promptly moved him into his own room at 3 months old. I never wanted to get into the habit of Bentley sleeping with us at night. Yes, I love my babies, and though I spend every waking hour with each of them, would love to cuddle with them at night as well, but am a firm believer in establishing healthy sleeping habits for all of my children. As well as a little sleep independence that will benefit them in the future. But at this time, I am not ready to move Scarlett out quite yet. Here is my reason, its a good one...

If you don't already know our situation, the day we brought Scarlett home from the hospital is the day that Bentley's impeccable sleeping habits went out the door. I had no idea that bringing home a sibling would effect him in this way. B.S. (Before Scarlett;) Bentley would gather up his blanky, Mr. Moo, and Giraffe (pillow pet) and tell us good nights, in his own language at the time, which sounded more like "goggen goggen". We would put him in his crib and he would suck his little thumb and peacefully fall asleep:) AND sleep straight through the night! These days, my poor husband has resorted to sleeping on the floor next to his toddler bed every night, or sleeping on one couch while Bentley is on the other, and then transferring him to his room at some point. He will no longer go to sleep on his own and usually freaks out when he finds that he has been moved to his bed in the middle of the night. He wakes up 2-3 times, crying, and Andy takes care of it all! I love my husband so much more for doing this!! He is sacrificing much needed sleep just to help me out, what an amazing man I am married to:-)
I can't imagine when or if Bentley will ever go back to being the amazing sleeper he once was, but for now we just have to make do, each of us sleeping with our designated child .
So this why I am accepting of the fact that Scarlett will be sleeping in her bassinet for a little while longer until we can get Bentley back on track;) And I don't have to sleep alone♥

I thought you might enjoy some precarious sleep positions, Bentley style! See if you can spot Mr. Moo in each of them;)

♥, The Happy Wife

5K For A Cause

One of the many things we want to instill in our children is to live an active and healthy lifestyle.  This is the way that I was brought up and would like to pass down to Bentley and Scarlett.  My parents were always active and avid runners growing up.  My Dad has run the L.A. marathon multiple times and I remember joining both of them for 5k and 10k marathons when my sisters and I were young.  We would do the family fun run which was 1 mile, recieve a little medal and feel so proud of ourselves.

This is what I remember and this what I want my children to remember when they are older. And so it begins....

Andy and I took the babies on their very first 5K run on Saturday.  Finish Chelsea's Run is dedicated to 17 year old Chelsea King, the Poway High student who tragically had her life cut short while out on a run in Rancho Bernardo.  This 5k run is to help raise money for Chelsea's Light Foundation, which provides scholarship's to college-bound teens whom have "embraced Chelsea's service-over-self ethic." Needless to say, we were more than happy to participate.

We started the race in a sea of thousands, all there to show support for Chelsea's cause.

Bentley and Scarlett had no idea what was going on, but I know they will appreciate our efforts in the future♥

On a side note, at this time in Bentley's life, strollers are a thing of the past. He doesn't believe in sitting in one, and would much rather "walk like a big boy". This is a battle we do not believe is worth fighting.  He is very good about walking right beside us or holding onto one of our hands.  But for this race we HAD to put him in the stroller.  Let's just say he was less than thrilled and probably screamed his head off for the first quarter mile, but it quickly sank in that he wasn't getting out, and he settled down to enjoy the rest of the ride.

At one point we were running on the 163 fwy. 

The last 1/2 mile or so was all up hill,  and once we had about 200 yards to go, we let Bentley run to the finish line;-)

Everyone was cheering him on:) It was one of my proudest moments as a mommy, seeing my little guy running as fast as he can, so excited to cross that line♥

Our time- 49:06. Not bad, considering the jumbo double jogger we were pushing the entire way;)

After race festivities

We look forward to our next 5k as well as Finishing Chelsea's Run again next year!♥

♥, The Happy Wife