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No surprise, but Elliott is off the charts in weight, height and head circumference. Good news is that he is very proportional.

Weight: 13 lbs, 10 oz. (98th percentile) – compared to Natalie who was 10 lbs, 13 oz (67th percentile, although this varies by gender). Jordan had guessed 12.5 lbs; I guessed 12 lbs. We were off!

Height: 23.5 inches (100th percentile)

Head circumference: 41.5 cm (100-105th percentile) The doc asked me if we had any big heads in the family… I responded no, but that is totally incorrect. His Daddy kinda has a big head, as evidenced by his large baseball caps. That would also explain why the baby hats that I ordered for 0-6 mo. didn’t fit, nor did any from his big cousin Trevor. Luckily, Nana scored us a couple from Bloomingdale’s!

My sister Leah recently emailed me: “Also, the amount of Elliott pictures is already a lot less than Natalie pics! The wo’s of a being the second child ;)”. So here you go!

Thanks for the love Auntie Leah! Way to look out for the youngest!

I like your kiss but how about you let Mama hold me instead?

Yay! The girls included me on their play date!! They are exhausting. I slept for 40 min straight in my crib after Mama and I got home!

Aw, Ms Megan. Thanks for the special 1-on-1!

Natalie’s friend Hannah just became a big sister too! Her Dad (my boss) is on paternity leave so we have has two fun-filled, but hectic, play dates this week.

Natalie was having some trouble sharing Mama so we talked about some great things about being a big sis. Big sisters can:

Play with play dough
Eat mini bagels
Dance
Have friends over
Play with toys
Hold babies

Babies cannot do those! They mostly do this:

Elliott also loves sleeping in the Ergo baby carrier. I need to try to wean him from this a little.

Natalie continues to shower Elliott with kisses and try to help when he is crying. As long as that help doesn’t mean Mama carrying Elliott instead of her. That’s reasonable, right?!?

Happy 1-Month Elliott! (Okay, it was really on Friday the 19th, but Natalie was unexpectedly home after an Arctic Parade at school – it was freezing and she was crying – and an expectedly busy Saturday.)

Yep, I'm a Big Guy - certainly filling out my onesie! (My belly button, which was initially an outie, is now an innie, helped out by my good eating!)

Hey, hey, hey... I used to be the star of this blog. Don't forget about me - Natalie!

Although it has been an incredible month, I am thankful that we have our first month as parents of 2 kids under our belt – how do folks ever do a ratio of more kids than adults?!?

Here’s a summary of who Elliott is and what he likes at one month old (I tried to use the same categories as I did for Natalie… it was fun to compare and reminisce!):

Weight / Height: TBD – Doc’s appt is next Thurs, though he’s clearly gaining weight well. He’s filling out well and there’s not much room left in the 3-month clothes
Who does he look like? A lot like his big sister Natalie! He definitely has Jordan’s eyes. And probably my skin tone. My dad said this picture looks a lot like me when I was a baby… its nice to actually have a kid who might resemble some of my traits. After all, the mom is the one who was pregnant for 9.5+ months!

Do you like my St. Patrick's Day outfit? Even though I was a couple days too late to wear it on the holiday, I still am Mommy's Lucky Charm!

Favorite Food: Mom’s Milk – about 8 times a day. (He tried his first bottle with Nana yesterday… she said he was confused at first, but gulped it down.)
Nicknames: None from me yet… I have to work on it! Jordan calls him his Little Buddy (as does Natalie) and E-Man, I think. (In reading Natalie’s 1-month post, I saw that we called her Hungry Hungry Hippo… that reminded me what an incredible eater she was – she just acted like she was STARVING. Elliott is not like that, though he does eat well.)
Favorite Songs: You are my Sunshine. Mommy Loves Me. Elliott Boy (to the tune of Macho Man)
Favorite Author: None yet – we’ve read a lot of Courdory and How Do I Love You and I Love you More. Elliott loves to read in bed with his big sister, Natalie – and she loves to have him.

Natalie: Stop tickling me, Elliott! (Just kidding - more, please, more!!)

Favorite position: Lying on someone’s chest or wrapped up in the Ergo baby carrier
Fussy time: Every time he doesn’t get to fall asleep on someone and is expired
Ways to soothe: Ergo baby carrier with pacifier, jiggling, I’ve even resorted to jogging up and down the hallway in the house with Elliott on his side b/c he seems to like the motion so much. He has taken to the pacifier a little bit, though seems to be paci picky. He def. has a fav.
Places he has visited: Natalie’s school (almost daily), Doc’s office, 2 restaurants, Church, a Hotel swimming pool (sidelines only), the park
Favorite Things to Do: Watch his big sister, nap on someone, look at faces. He seems less into his black-and-white shapes than Natalie was, which were a big hit for her. He does like the Sunshine next to his diaper changing table.
Least Favorite Things: He isn’t a great independent sleeper yet… as I type this, his strapped to the front of me in the Ergo Baby Carrier (This is after 1 hr, 40 min of trying to get him to sleep in his crib on his own… the 2nd day in the row I’ve tried that for a mid-day rest!)

How is Elliott compared to Natalie? He seems a bit quieter – he doesn’t talk quite as much. I think he is a little easier going, though figuring out sleep stuff is always a challenge (we’ve made great strides since my first draft of this post 3 days ago though!) He is quick with a smile, especially in the morning after eating or when he gets a close up with Dado, Mama or Natalie. Overall, I want to spend more time getting to know him better… I feel like he slept a ton the first two weeks and I spent weeks 3 & 4 treating him like a newborn… but he’s not, so I’m still figuring this little cutie out!

How has Natalie reacted to Elliott? Natalie showers Elliott with hugs and kisses. She runs to get his “RoRo” or a paci if his fusses. She asks about him when she wakes up and wants to see him when she gets home from school (or at school, if Elliott goes to pick her up too). If Elliott is fussing, she’ll ask Jordan to pick him up. One time, she did say that she wanted Elliott to “go bye bye”. I asked her why and she said because she didn’t want me to feed him and she wanted to play with me. We talk about how its okay to be sad sometimes that she has to share me or Dado or sad about some of the changes. Her teachers at school said that they haven’t seen any change in her behavior… and in fact, the week he was born, she was awarded the Sapphire Hero for being such a good communicator about her baby brother! All in all, Elliott couldn’t have a sweeter big sister than the one he has. We are so proud of her and can learn a lot from the generous love she shares.

Hey Mom, are you taking this picture because you're impressed with my neck strength... or because you really just want to show off the whale on my cute bum?

Thanks for reading our blog and caring about our two cute, wonderful, adorable and loving kids!

Although we’ve stopped the monthly updates on Natalie, I have to say, Natalie seems so much bigger than she was at her 2-year birthday!  So, I thought all these changes deserved an update too – even if its just for more own record-keeping and isn’t organized very well!  Her official 28-months is tomorrow, but I’ll have Elliott’s 1-month update tomorrow, and it seemed more important to get his on the exact date!

Favorite Foods: Cheese, Bread, Sandwiches (Meat/Cheese or Peanut Butter), Milk, Pasta, Cupcakes or Muffins. She eats fruit a lot and veggies often… we’re lucky that the peer pressure at school helps ensure that she gets a variety of veggies!
Favorite Books: ZooBorns: Baby Animals from Around the World, ZooBorns: ABCs, Lazy LadyBug, The Little Engine that Could, Pacifiers are not Forever, Fancy Nancy
Favorite Things to Do: Dance, Play Tea Party, Run, Go to the Park, Play with friends at School, Bake

Talking: Natalie talks in full sentences.  “Because” is one of the cutest words she says.  Her grandparents, teachers, etc. continue to understand her better.  As the mom, I’m able to make out at least 80% of what she says.  Dad is really good too – at least 70%; he only needs some extra translation from me on occasion.

Letters: Natalie’s letter recognition is really great!  She knows: D (Dado), E (Edmund from school and Elliott), G (Grandma and Grandpa), M (Mama), N (Natalie & Nana), O (Owen from school), P (Poppy), R (Riley from school), S (Shiloh and Ms. Saba from school), T (Trevor), W (an upside M for Mommy) and Z (Zachary from school).  When we’re reading ABC books, C is often confused for G.

Personality: She likes to tease!  She often “wipes off” kisses that I give her, honks my nose, etc.  We call her a goof-a-loof and silly often.  She’s a fun kid!!!

Gross Motor Skills: Natalie loves to run, dance, jump, etc!  She bounces around with a lot of energy.  I often have trouble keeping up with her when running!

On my way for a touchdown! (Pop, its illegal to grab someone from the head!)

Schedule: She wakes up shortly before 7, but stays in bed content for 10-20 minutes until Jordan goes to get her.  Dado is completely in charge of the morning these days, since Elliott and I are usually sleeping after being up a couple times in the night.  They often sneak in to say “good bye” to us, which is awesome.  Natalie has a busy morning at school (sparkle time, gym time, artwork, etc) and then naps for about 75 minutes if at school or 2 hours if at home.  She goes to bed around 7:30 p.m. every night.  The bedtime routine is fun… she knows what to expect: pjs, vitamins (hers taste good but Dado’s and Mama’s do not and she always delivers ours, as well as pretends to taste them), brushes teeth (first from a parent, then by herself), and stories.  During stories, she must have both Mouseys (one for her hand, one for behind her head) and her paci (uh oh – we need to get rid of this before her 3rd bday?!?!?).  She also needs Yot and a purple blanket before going to bed.  And, I sing her songs… like Mommy Loves You (we rotate through different names – Mommy, Dado, Elliott and Natalie are most common…. Grandma, Grandpa, Nana, Pop are almost nightly…. randoms include Zachary’s Mama at school!)

If I could change one thing…. it would be that Natalie liked to cuddle with me more!  Even while singing to her in bed, she doesn’t want me to rub her back or belly.  Also, many of the kisses I get are with the paci in her mouth… though sometimes she’ll kiss my cheek during the day, which I just love!

I have to say – 2 continues to be such a fun age!  I love talking and playing with Natalie… she really is my little buddy!  Funny enough, she calls Elliott her little buddy (she picked this up from Jordan).

Yay! Mommy and I went on an adventure to the butterfly museum! Thanks for baby-sitting Elliott, Nana!

To celebrate the Week of the Young Child, Natalie’s class had mystery readers. I read one of Natalie’s favorites: ZooBorns Baby Animals from Around the World. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1442412720/ref=mw_dp_sim_ps2?pi=SL500_SY125

A friend from Kellogg – Andrew Bleiman – is one of the authors of this book.  We highly recommend that you check out his books or blog, www.zooborns.com!  Natalie’s favorite animal is Bella the Whale from the Shedd Aquarium.

Sure Mom. I promise I will sleep through the night (wink, wink)

Although our blog is usually just about kids, I have to say that I am deeply saddened by the explosions at the finish line of the Boston marathon. I ran the race in 2005. Jordan ran the last six miles with me. I cannot imagine a day that is supposed to be the cumulation of so much hard work turned into tragedy. We are praying for all those impacted. And we need to pray a lot more for peace and fewer tragedies overall.

Natalie, Elliott and I had our first successful outing… To Mr. Singer at the Farm Zoo. Natalie was outfitted in full rain gear, which we have had many opportunities to use.

Its raining, its pouring...

Mr. Singer greeted us upon our arrival, as Natalie has caught his attention in the past due on her energetic singing and dancing.

Mr. Singer, I’ll consider it…

Mr. Singer asked Natalie if she would come up on stage with him next time to sing “Wheels on the Bus” because she would be a good role model for the other kids who are bigger than her but don’t dance and sing as much as she does.  (During his concert, he took her request to do Wheels on the Bus, but she declined his offer to go up on stage).  On our walk back to the car, I asked her if she would go up with Mr. Singer next time, and she said no because she wants to stay with Mommy and Elliott.  Who can argue with that?  (That’s the same reason she gave when reading her an Easter book, I asked her if she wanted to go to Jerusalem with Jesus.)  🙂

Elliott was strapped in to me on our Ergo baby carrier for the entire trip (he thankfully likes it a lot more than Natalie did), so I wasn’t able to get a picture of him until we got home.  Here’s his reaction to all the excitement…

I love my RoRo and paci!

Tummy time is overrated!