a hunting we will go...

it's hard to see but harrison is wearing a plaid shirt...and that puffy orange vest.  top it off with one of those hats that has the flaps to cover his ears...and i think he looks a bit like elmer fudd. 

except exponentially cuter, of course.

now i just need to teach him to say "dat wascally wabbit".

Christmas 2008

i can wrap up the day in one phrase:  our boys are spoiled!  actually, we are ALL spoiled!

grammy, papa, and uncle zach came over for a big brunch.  then we watched harrison open lots of presents.

before they arrived we had our own little celebration.  santa brought an xbox for jer.  he works so hard all year, santa thought he deserved a special toy.  here he is opening his xbox games.

harrison is giving graham a kiss.

graham slept through all the festivities.

santa brought a doodle board for harrison.

and a remote-controlled dog!  that doesn't shed...woo hoo!  

mommy gave harrison some pajamas.  you can see how excited he is - ha!

uncle zach

harrison LOVES his uncle zach!  back when i was working uncle zach would come to our house every friday to watch harrison.  they developed quite a bond.

this picture was taken when harrison was almost six months old, while we were in memphis. somehow, uncle zach always gets the biggest smiles out of our boy!

Christmas day was a lot of fun...mostly because uncle zach and papa (two of harrison's favorite people) came over to play!

and, now, uncle zach has TWO nephews that adore him!  (and, yes, i did dress my children in matching pajamas.  i mean i have to do it while they're young, right?!)

the polar express

our friends the fitzpatrick's and the moody's came over before Christmas for a special screening of "the polar express".  it was a pajama party for the kiddos, complete with hot cocoa and snacks...just like they served in the movie.  

fun was had by all...or, at least, fun was had by me.  so much fun, in fact, that i had to go to bed early and leave jeremy to see our guests off.  

thanks, friends, for coming over to share some holiday fun with us!  and thanks for doing my dishes and being gracious about my early bedtime!  i hope we can make this an annual tradition.  i promise next year will be even better!

graham is five weeks old

my how he has grown!  

he is doing all the things five-week-olds are supposed to do.  staying awake more, making eye contact, following objects with his eyes, and just beginning to coo.  he is losing his hair little by little.  his happiest time, now, is first thing in the morning - a wide awake boy.  he loves lying on his back and kicking.

i feel like i am more "in the swing of things" as a mom of two.  each day just seems to go a bit more smoothly...mostly because harrison is now used to having his brother around and can be more patient while i'm nursing.  and because, as you see above, graham will finally accept a pacifier, which has helped him (well, all of us, actually) tremendously!

we are excited to spend Christmas as a family of four!

the moses basket

my dear friend andrea made the most beautiful moses basket for graham.  i love it.  and, more importantly, graham loves it.

and harrison loves it, too!  

yes, virginia, there is a Christmas card...

***updated with the photos i was actually able to take***

...but unless there's a Christmas miracle, it won't be arriving at your home by the 25th! 

i believe the white's will be spreading some post-holiday cheer this year.  thanks, in part, to a revelation that occurred while attempting to take a family photo.  

first, getting a picture of all four of us is impossible.  mostly because this would require that i dye my hair.  no, it's not vanity.  it's just the simple fact that no one wants to open a Christmas card and see 2 inch gray roots.  

so jeremy and i tried to get a picture of the boys (insert revelation here), only to find out that harrison only likes to "play with" his brother on his own terms.  when i try to set them next to each other in the chair - or, God forbid, actually put graham in his lap! - much wailing and gnashing of teeth ensues. 

it's as if harrison is screaming, "mom, he's touching me!" or "but, mom, he's on my side of the chair!"

thank God we do not have any upcoming road trips!

i could title it "silent night", but then i'd be lying

during a period of time that i will lovingly refer to as "the 12 days of colic" we discovered that graham needs to have a peaceful environment while he is nursing.  if he doesn't get to eat his meals quietly, he makes sure that we don't get to have any peace and quiet for the rest of the day. 

hey, i guess that's only fair. 

one teeny, weeny problem (in the form of a 20-month old boy): imagine trying to get any semblance of peace and quiet with harrison ottley white in the house.

we are working on it.  i'm even resorting to bribes.

well, it's been a month (nov. 14-dec. 14)

love this picture.  this is still the face harrison makes when daddy tries to give him kisses.  i guess graham is simply following suit.

harrison in the thanksgiving feather hat that he made at school.  this was before "the sickness of 2008" struck our home.

this was during "the sickness of 2008" when grammy & papa brought us yummy thanksgiving leftovers to eat.  papa kept harrison occupied with stickers.  so much fun!  incidentally, grammy, papa and jeremy all caught the sickness.  i remained healthy...thanks in part to my OCD-like hand-washing behavior.

and graham slept peacefully through it all.  you can see how tired i am.  at this point jeremy and i had been awake for three days and two nights.

graham has blue eyes like his daddy.  (at least they have not changed color yet).  harrison's were extremely dark from day one and are now a deep brown like mine.  so, if all stays the same, we'll have one blue-eyed boy and one brown-eyed boy.  

the first snow.  harrison was far too captivated to look at me and smile.

the first bath together.

my big boy.  so cute in his fleece sweatshirt.  so sad that it's cold enough to need a fleece sweatshirt.

harrison loves saying "hi", giving kisses and touching graham.  for the most part he is very gentle.  except for the time when he bashed graham in the head with the remote control. 

but that was an accident...i think. 

breastfeeding questions

***update:  thanks so much to all who commented, emailed, or wrote to me on facebook.  i appreciate all the advice!

because i do not have the time to get online and do my own research, i will send my questions out into blog world and wait for the internet to come to me. 

hopefully i'll get some answers this way...  

1) if i'm going to pump and store milk, when's the best time to do it?

2) how do i know if something i ate doesn't agree with graham?  will it be more than just normal burps?

3) how long does it take for something i ate to get into my milk?

4) if i'm "baby wise"ing him...and he finishes his meal, but seems to need more sucking time for soothing in order to fall asleep after "play time", but he WON'T take a pacifier...what in the world do i do?

okay, THANKS!!

and, if you're wondering why i don't already know this stuff (this being my second baby) it's because i wasn't able to nurse harrison for this long.  

i am thankful

well, it's been two weeks and two days since we brought home another little mister.  graham has been adjusting well to life at the white house.  he eats well, sleeps well, and poops well. what else could i ask for??  i am truly thankful.

our sweet harrison came down with two ear infections and strep throat.  the symptoms of which appeared the night before thanksgiving.  needless to say, we have been running on VERY little sleep around here.  and thanksgiving was not celebrated until friday evening when jer's mom brought leftovers...which jeremy & i ate while standing up in the kitchen.  still, i am very thankful.

to make matters worse, harrison refuses to take his antibiotic.  we had to go to urgent care yesterday (after spending the previous day at the doctor's office...two days at kaiser permanente with two kids is enough to push new mom over the edge.) and he got a shot in each leg.  we picked up a different prescription - chewables instead of liquid - which, so far, harrison still won't eat.  i've only tried crushing and hiding it in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  i'm going to give him two more tries - in pudding and in yogurt.  if he still won't eat it he's going to have to have shots every day for a week.  poor kid.  yet, i am so thankful. 

we've hardly taken any pictures of graham.  my mommy guilt is kicking in big time over that one.  and i have not had time to upload the few that we have taken.  some day soon, hopefully.  i can say that he is such a precious boy and i am deeply in love with him already.  my friend kipplyn told me that "love multiples".  boy, she is SO right.  my heart is so full. 

a very hypothetical conversation

scene:  while sitting at the dinner table, during an extremely mediocre (at best) meal, a husband and wife begin chatting.  their two children are in the background - two boys.  a newborn baby who is peacefully sleeping on the couch...and a toddler who is running around the house with the kind of energy only a toddler can possess.

husband:  (spoken while chewing his mediocre meal) how bout if i run to wendy's a pick up a couple of burgers?

wife:  will you take "toddler" with you?

husband:  only if i can leave him there. 

we're home

although the hospital provides an excellent room service menu, i was ready to get home. 

at the moment, harrison is peacefully sleeping upstairs.  graham has been fed and is watching t.v. with mama & daddy.  this was always his most active time of day during pregnancy and it's proving to be the same outside the womb.  i started singing to him and he came alive - so focused - as if he recognized every song.  simply amazing.

we are looking forward to a good night - with or without sleep - and a great day tomorrow.

graham peregrine white

november 14, 2008

10:35 am

a whopping 8.75 pounds

19.5 inches

we are truly blessed...

harrison was more interested in eating my saltine crackers...and playing peek-a-boo with papa...and taking pictures with the camera...and running in the hallways...than meeting little brother.  who knew the hospital was such a fun place to be?!

daddy's legs aren't that big

last night, for the first time, harrison talked to my pregnant belly.  he even gave "the baby" kisses. it was such a precious moment between the "four" of us.  

previously, when jer would talk to the baby, harrison would get a bit confused and upset, so it was a pleasure to see that he finally understood and joined in on the conversation. 

then he started talking to, and kissing, jer's calf muscle.  

...so, maybe he still doesn't get it.  

seven random things

christy at the call of the wild tagged me to post 7 random things about myself.  

hmmm....

1) i am continually baffled at how expensive it is to eat organically...without added "stuff".  did you know that a 3/4 cup serving of "sugar" cereal - like cinnamon toast crunch or captain crunch - contains LESS sugar than a 1-2 tbsp. serving of gerber juice snacks?!  the stuff they market for toddlers is terrible!  and don't even get me started about high fructose corn syrup...

2) i love my pregnant belly.  the last trimester is my favorite part of pregnancy.

3) i firmly believe that any store which provides (and expects you to return) a shopping cart; should allocate the parking spaces right next to the shopping cart "depots" for pregnant women and mothers of toddlers. 

4) i have a love/hate relationship with reality t.v.

5) one of my very favorite things in life is waking up to the sound of my sweet boy playing and talking to himself in his crib.

6) i like painted toe nails and unpainted finger nails.

7) i LOVE giving thoughtful gifts - the kind someone will really love/enjoy.  and i LOVE the wrapping.  it's all about the presentation, people.

i just have to wonder...

when you see a harley davidson biker dude (is it offensive to call him "dude"?) - dressed in head-to-toe leather - out riding his hog at 5:30 pm on a wednesday night....

do you think he....

a) has some kind of cool biker dude job that requires a dress code of head-to-toe leather?

b) changed out of his work clothes and put on the leather specifically for the ride home?

c) doesn't have a job.  rather, he was at home all day and thought a nice ride in the brisk denver air would do him good?

whatever the case, all this wondering provided me five minutes of entertainment during rush hour last night.  thanks mr. biker man.

post election day

pastor pete wilson of nashville, tennessee said it best this morning.  

and i couldn't agree with him more!

happy halloween ?????

given the fact that this is the white house, it was only appropriate that harrison dress up as a republican for halloween.  jer's mom made the cutest elephant costume - she is an amazing seamstress!  this was the best picture i could get....

all the other photos look something like this....

so, do you think harrison is telling us that he's voting for the left?  or is it just that he doesn't want to wear the elephant ears??  (please notice he had thrown his hat on the ground).  the poor boy looks tortured, but he DID have fun trick-or-treating.

and coloring his pumpkin....

in the end, i think he forgave me for putting him through so much...

fall 2008

what's better than a boy dressed in cords and a plaid button-down?

mama's boy

pregnant mommy...and yummy spaghetti

(that was daddy's plate of spaghetti...that harrison decided to enjoy for himself.  didn't want anyone to think we give our child "hungry man" portions)

LOVE this picture!  in case you can't tell, harrison is saying "enough with the photos, mother!"  he has gotten so darn expressive!  he keeps us laughing!

thank God for bibs

this is what happens when you drink the yogurt out of the container instead of using a spoon. 

hey, as long as he's happy, right?! 

i'm still here!

my sweet friend, christy, keeps writing to check up on me.  thanks friend!  i do apologize for being so absent from blogging.  somehow life just gets in the way.  

BUT...

yes, i'm still doing great.  i'm physically ready to get this baby out of me.  (i started retaining water this week and i hate swollen hands and feet!)  but i'm not yet emotionally ready for the transition from one to two.  nor am i organizationally ready...and my house is not clean...and, well, you know all those things that need to be done.  or at least the raging hormones keep telling me they need to be done. 

and i really don't think jeremy is ready either.  he seems to think setting up his new plasma t.v. is more important than vacuuming.  i keep reminding him not to mess with the hormones.  he continues to ignore me.  uh, i mean them.

men, if any of you are reading...don't mess with a pregnant woman when she is in nesting mode. honey, if you are reading...seriously, you need to get down to business. 

speaking of hormones...i had another "crazy lady" moment this past week.  i ventured to wal-mart.  that was my number one mistake.  i really should never have entered the parking lot. but, to make a very long and boring story a bit shorter...two wal-marts later and i still didn't have everything i needed.  i vowed never to enter their doors again.  and, on the way home, i took out my frustration on a VERY slow driver by flashing my brights at her until she picked up the pace.  that little gold honda accord got out of my way pretty quickly.  

and i'll just leave you on that note.  ha!!  what a "feel good" post this is! 

a much needed update...

here are the random tidbits of our lives...

the basement is finished.  praise Jesus, we made it through!  i did experience two meltdowns during the remodel - a serious emotional breakdown because drywall dust got all over our house...and, worse, last friday i committed the pregnant equivalent of drunk-dialing and called our contractor in tears because the carpet guy had simply pushed me over the edge.  but now it's done.  i will post pics soon.  

harrison is done with his binky.  it wasn't even an issue for him, for which i am very thankful. last week i went out to dinner with a couple of girlfriends.  jer put him to sleep without a binky and he hasn't used one since.

i am still have contractions.  had an appointment today and am one centimeter dilated.  they really aren't concerned about me given the fact that i've made it this far...and we are close to the "safety mark" of 37 weeks.  i, however, am really holding out for 40 weeks.  so, we'll see. 

we've scheduled a c-section for my due date, which is november 20th.  if i go into labor before that date, however, i plan to try a natural delivery.  so, again, we'll see.  

we hired jennifer to help me out with harrison and the housework three mornings a week - just in an effort to help control some of these contractions.  it has been a blessing.  

we still do not have a name for this sweet baby boy that is kicking inside of me.  i know God will impress upon us what he should be called at some point.  

harrison turned 18 months last week.  time flies.  at his 18-month check up we found out he is 34.5 inches tall and 26 pounds.  he is a happy, healthy boy.  we have started speech therapy once a week.  stacy comes to our house.  she is wonderful.  other than a language delay, there has not been any concern whatsoever (from any of the professionals we've seen) about any other types of developmental delays or problems.  we are truly thankful.  

harrison is making the CUTEST face lately...a big cheesy grin...gap teeth and all.  it absolutely make my heart melt.  and it makes me laugh out loud.  every time.  

i'm quite sure there is much more to say.  but the bigger my belly gets, the smaller my  brain gets.  so, this is all i can remember for now.  : ) 

i could be out looking for eligible bachelors

on monday nights, thanks to all things "fantasy", i get the joy of experiencing what it's like to be invisible.  as i try to converse with my husband about the important matters of life, i get responses such as:

"you bungholes"

"come on, baby, daddy needs a touchdown"

"give me an I-N-T"

"oh, you dumb-arse!!!" (while throwing the remote control across the room)

"sweet jesus, help me out"

thank God for DVR.  because without it, my husband would have no idea that i am actually sitting right next to him. 

the funny thing....i just looked over to see that jer is attempting to read dostoevsky's crime and punishment...WHILE CONTINUALLY CHECKING HIS FANTASY SCORE!  look, i know i can't compete with dostoevsky...but dostoevsky AND football...at the same time??!!  

i might as well be single.

i have a feeling this won't be the last time

we've recently celebrated a couple of "firsts" here in the white house.  well, "celebrated" might be a bit of a strong word.  maybe "encountered" or "experienced" would be more appropriate. 

in order, they go like this:  poison control, "no", and poop.

last week, while jeremy and i had our heads stuck under the sink in the guest bathroom, harrison gave us a little scare.  you see, normally, the guest bathroom cabinet houses all of harrison's bath products and medicine...and other household products that need to be behind a safety latch.  due to the "leaky faucet debacle of 2008", all those products were strewn throughout our hallway.  

as i was trying to balance the roles of mother and plumber, i looked over my shoulder to make sure harrison was okay.  he seemed to be having great fun with daddy's (aka plumber extraordinaire) flashlight.  the next minute, i looked over to see that he had managed to open a bottle of rubbing alcohol. 

imagine seeing your toddler casually walking down the hallway carrying an opened bottle with the words "70% isopropyl".  my first thought was,  "oh, how sweet, he's going to be a doctor someday".  uh huh.  i am cool under pressure. 

i did not know whether or not harrison had actually imbibed.  (Lord, i hope i don't ever repeat those words.  especially not during the teenage years.)  and the nice lady at poison control told me that it is a rarity because most toddlers don't like the bitter taste.  (again, Lord, please let all alcohol taste bitter to him.  forever.)  so we simply watched for signs of drunkenness. 

you know...staggering speech, walking into walls, vomiting.  all classic toddler behavior if you ask me.  

needless to say, i wouldn't be "celebrating" this "first" if harrison, indeed, had gotten drunk. but, he was just fine.  

i highly recommend our friends at poison control, who even called us back an hour later to make sure everything was okay.

the other "firsts":  

harrison told me "no" (not verbally, it was by shaking his head back and forth).  listen people, the boy has been shaking his head "no" for a very long time, but i purposefully did not ever use the word "no" while "shaking".  that is, until the speech pathologist told me i should start associating the two.  so, now he can say "no".  the first time he used it was while in the bathtub.  

mama:  harrison, it's time to say "bye bye water"

harrison:  defiant head shaking

the other "first" was also during bath time.  he pooped.  in the water.  amidst lots of floating toys.  

the only thing i have to say about that is that i (pregnant girl) did an AMAZING job of not freaking out (and not gagging).  really, kudos to me.  

home from the hospital

yes, it's true.  we just got home.  but, thankfully, i am still "pre" instead of "post" partum. 

these pesky contractions.

today they decided to start.  and they still haven't decided to stop.  

you'll be happy to know (as i was) that some of my "contractions" are not contractions at all. rather, they are simply "irritable uterus".  hmmm.  if they keep on like this, i know someone else who is going to be quite irritable. 

also, the nurse was quite complimentary about how well hydrated i am.  i told her the 120 oz. story.  she was impressed.  at least i think that was the expression on her face.  however, in hind sight, it might have been more of a "this chick is loco" kind of look.  

here's the thing:  the rule of thumb has been that if i have four or more contractions per hour...for a two hour time span...i need to go to the hospital.  today, we discovered that this rule really doesn't work for me.  because, clearly, i have had WAY more than four contractions per hour...for WAY more than two hours.  

so, they've given me a new directive.  which, of course, requires a follow-up with my OB within the next week.  it also requires rest, hydration, and warm bathes.  and "today" is supposed to be my new "baseline".  so, basically, if i have more frequent, or more painful, contractions than today...that's when i go to the hospital.

two really nice things about this hospital experience...quality time with hubs AND not being charged a co-pay!  woo hoo!

i'll get by with a little help from my friends

i have a really hard time asking for help.  actually, i think it's more that i have a really hard time admitting that i need help.  in either case, when i do make myself vulnerable enough to acknowledge my need and request a hand...

it makes me feel a whole lot better when i'm not met with a begrudging, resentful attitude.  

sigh. 

the storybook farm

during the month of september, denver's children's museum is partnering with the urban farm.  they've created a really fun exhibit that changes each and every day.  so far, we've gotten to meet sheep, cows, rabbits, goats, horses, turkeys, chickens, and even a llama!  

the big wooly sheep have been the most fun...and the most friendly. 

harrison has enjoyed working in the garden, riding the tractor, feeding the animals, and listening to some fun stories about the farm. 

we feel so blessed to live in a place that offers inexpensive and creative opportunities to play with our child!

things to remember...

some of the best memories cannot be captured by anything other than my mind.  for example....

harrison is a "dancing machine".  jer and i LOVE watching him "get down".  his moves resemble something similar to bill cosby's (as seen during the opening theme song of the cosby show).

he is now saying a few words:  daddy, hi, yeah (as in "yes"), and night (as in "night, night")

he does not like it when mommy & daddy look at, touch, or talk to mommy's belly.  harrison is insistent on pulling my shirt over my belly so that it does not show.  (a few weeks ago he was quite obsessed with my belly button.  specifically, he loved sticking his finger in it.  i'm sort of happy that phase has passed.)

he does not like it when mommy has to go potty.  i mean, God forbid if i actually closed the bathroom door and got a little privacy.  that would just be unheard of.  but if i let harrison in the bathroom with me, he still gets a bit whiny, tries to pull up my shorts (while i'm sitting on the potty!), and pulls the toilet paper off the roll so that i can get done quicker.  

he has absolutely no issues when daddy has to go potty.  the child is an anomaly. 

animal noises:  dog panting, cow mooing, and (best of all) an elephant "noise", which is (silently) made by waving his right arm up and down like a trunk.  he also makes an airplane/car noise - trying to mimic our vroom-vroom's.

last night, jer and i watched as harrison played with his books and his backpack.  we talked about how, someday, we will watch him pull big textbooks out of his bag so that he can start his homework.  time simply goes by too quickly.  just one reason why it's so great to take time to cherish the things that are happening right now.

casa bonita

we went to casa bonita on friday night.  although it is a white family tradition that dates back to grammy's & papa's college days, it was my first time to visit this beloved restaurant.  harrison loved it.  he ate two bites of dinner and, then, proceeded to clear his tray (yes, he is a very well-mannered boy), pull off his bib, and stand up.  there was no doubt that he was ready to EXPLORE.  

jer and his parents took turns walking him around while i rested my weary feet. it was a lovely night.