back in the saddle

It's been an adjustment this past week as I've headed back to work. I feel like I need to spend every waking moment holding or playing with one of these two cuties. I just can't seem to get enough of them. I can't believe how big Porter is getting, and although I'll have to update in a few months for his second birthday, I want to be able to remember what he's doing right now.Porter is just a sweet little boy who is constantly entertained by...well, anything.

*His favorite thing right now seems to be fish. He loves Finding Nemo, the tanks of fish at Walmart (which we now have to visit everytime we go shopping) his goldfish crackers (I really do believe he likes them for more than just the fact that they are tasty...he goes up to the cupboard they are housed in and pulls a fish face, followed by a sweet "Pwease" repeated over and over until he gets his fish). Oh, and he has a little Nemo book that he loves to "Bwead" every day. We even went on a nice long walk the other day, and he had to carry his Nemo book with him.

*He loves to watch birds (which was what we were doing when I took the photo above). We'll go out into the backyard at night when it starts to cool down and lay on blankets and watch for the birds. There are a whole bunch of them that live in our pine tree in the back yard and they fly in and out constantly. Porter loves to lay and watch them.

*He loves to help with anything he can. He loves to help change Bridger's diaper (he gets to unfold the clean diaper, hand you wet-wipes and take the dirty diaper to the trash). He cleans up after himself when he makes a mess; and if you hand the kid a mop he'll clean the floors until the cows come home (we don't have any cows... so he stays busy for a while).

*Porter still loves to eat fruit more than anything, but he's getting much better at eating other things. He's not too picky of an eater and he seems to be doing better daily. He especially loves Captain Crunch (with the berries of course). My favorite is that he eats all of the berries first, picks them out one by one. After all the berries (or "balls" as Porter calls them) are gone, then he'll eat the rest.

*He loves to be in the water. Loves to play in his pool in the backyard and loves to take baths.

*Oh yeah, and he's got the most beautiful blue eyes and red eyelashes I have ever seen. The contrast is stunning. (see above)



And, if I'm not wrestling Porter, I get to cuddle with this little bug. Bridger is such a good baby. He eats really well (if you need evidence, just ask to see thighs this kiddo has... they're getting nice and plump).

*He sleeps even better than he eats. He'll go for 8-9 hours at night now and he doesn't cry in the middle of the night (at least not yet... I'm sure the day will come). In fact, Briggs doesn't cry much at all unless he is REALLY hungry. He's just about as content as they come.

*He loves his baths.

*He loves to be swaddled really tight when he goes to sleep. Kyle says it works like a tranquilizer. Briggs can be completely awake, swaddle him and he'll be asleep in minutes. Works like a charm.

*He likes his pacifier, but doesn't rely on it completely.

*He suffers from male-pattern baldness (as diagnosed by his pediatrician), but we have high hopes that he will make a full recovery. (His pediatrician is a funny man... came up with that one on the fly. I responded that yes he does, it's hereditary. He actually gets it from his namesake... Grampa Dime had the same problem, just not so early on in life. We both had a good long laugh).

*Bridger also gives the cutest little full body smiles I've seen, and it's not too hard to get one (or ten) out of him. He likes to smile.

I was told by many people that when I had Porter that I would look forward to going back to work by the time my maternity leave was over. I was told this again with Bridger. Those people were wrong, and they're wrong again. I love my job here at home more than my occupation. I've always loved being a nurse. It's what I've wanted to be since I was a little girl, and it definitely helps that I work with great people and really enjoy what I do.

But I love being a mom even more.

Of course, with sweeties like these running around... who wouldn't.

Maybe those people didn't have cute kids...