Payton's First Haircut

This past weekend I took Payton to get her first haircut at Bella & Max in Bothell's Country Village. Although we just adore her baby curls, it was time to get it all evened out. And I wanted a day when her hair would look decent enough not to put it into pigtails!

All last week we practiced getting her haircut at home. I had P sit on the ottoman and I wrapped a receiving blanket around her. Then I turned on one of her shows, sprayed her hair down with a water bottle, then lightly brushed and played with it while she watched Mickey Mouse. After a couple of practice runs, she seemed comfortable enough to go to the salon.

So Saturday morning we got to Bella & Max and she hopped right into the pink car and let the hairdresser wrap the cape around her - like she was a pro. We popped in a DVD of Elmo and chop, chop, chop - off it went. She was the perfect angel, well other than the little freakout she had when the lady tried to trim her bangs. We took off about an inch all over and I got her first little curl in a tiny plastic baggie to keep. I won't lie and say I didn't get emotional... without her pigtails, my Payton looks so grown up!









After:


My darling little girl is getting so big, so fast! Only two months until she's 2 years old. God help us all!!

Learning the ABCs

Right now we're REALLY into singing. The ABCs are a favorite, along with Row, Row, Row, Spider (of the Itsy Bitsy kind), and Twinkles.

I was able to tape Miss P helping me sing the ABCs yesterday. She's almost got it. I already miss her saying "appletree" instead of "E,F,G" but it also means she's growing up. Oh how I wish I could bottle her up!

Splish splash

Ryan loves his baths. In fact, we get more smiles and laughs out of him at bath time, then any other time of the day.

He STTN!

I know this might be a little premature to announce this amazing feat my little guy my has accomplished, it might even jinx me for another month or two... but I don't care: RYAN SLEPT ALL NIGHT! From 10pm to 7am, I seriously had to check his breathing this morning when my alarm went off! He sleeps pretty good as it is, for the most part. Usually only waking once for a bottle and a diaper change. But YAY! I feel so alert and alive this morning, for once!

Just had to share. :)

3 months old!

Ryan is three months old today. I can't believe it. I can't believe how quickly time has passed, I can't believe how big he's getting, and I can't believe how much love I have for him and my little family.

Things are going well for the most part. Ryan is sleeping through the night more and more (I'm getting upwards of 4.5hr stretches between feedings), he's eating like a champ - up to 5oz in each bottle, and learning to juggle my attention between both kids is becoming easier too. It's a lot of work. A *LOT* of work. The nights that Andy is at the station and I have both kids is definitely the hardest. And now that I'm going back to work full-time, those nights are going to be even more taxing.

Payton is adjusting... She had a rough week, she got to spend two full days with her little brother at daycare and she didn't like it one bit. She kept telling Sharon our daycare provider "Baby, home!" and also crying a lot for me. It breaks my heart that I can't be there for her, but I know it'll make her stronger. She has to learn how to share not only her toys, but the attention she gets from everyone too. She's been pretty needy at home as well but I think she's starting to turn the corner.



"Huuuuug Brudder! Huuuuug Brudder!" And once we let her hold him, she coos smothers him with kisses until we pry them off each other.

And this is what happens if we don't let her hold/hug him. Oh what Fun!



And I wouldn't change any of it, not one bit.

Easter eggs

Last weekend the kids and I were invited to my friend Ashley's grandfather's farm in Puyallup. We were delighted to see so many eggs and the gigantic easter basket. Talk about Kodak Moments...!

Silent Moos

Payton is so funny, everything has to be on her terms. Everything. Case in point - this video below. (Nevermind the wardrobe - or the lack there of.)

Returning to work

Sigh. I'm going back to work this Tuesday. Only part-time, but still. A few weeks ago, my cell phone exploded with messages and calls telling me that my company layed-off something like 100 people. Needless to say, I'm thankful I was on maternity leave and covered by FMLA.

There are no longer any web people employed in Bothell, except for myself, so the website has been at a standstill and things are starting to get a little messy. I volunteered to go in a few days a week to help out until I return full-time in the middle of April. They seem to be pretty happy with this, I'm hoping it'll help me keep my job!

Payton will continue to go to daycare Tuesday through Friday and I'll go into the office on the days Andy is home, so he can watch Ryan. Eventually, Ryan will also go to daycare a few days a week too but we're holding off on that until the last minute possible... to save money. Daycare is SO expensive!

Anyway. I guess it'll be better to start back slow and ease into things, right? I was really hoping to enjoy all 12 weeks off, especially since we had an extended stay in the hospital and Andy was gone for almost a month. Oh well. "At least I have a job. At least I have a job."

Wish me luck, I'm going to have my work cut out for me.

Ryan Lee MacDonald

So I'm a little late in posting this, I've been kinda busy with this whole second baby thing we have going on. :)



Our MacDonald Family grew by two feet this January - Baby Ryan is here! It was a crazy crazy birth story - even shorter than Payton's, believe it or not. You can read all about it on Ryan and Payton's website, linked on the right of this page. CRAZY!

I hope to start being a better blogger from here on out, now that we have a routine that seems to be working and I'm no longer figuring out which way is up!

The waiting is the hardest part

...at least that's what Tom Petty sings, and I totally agree.

Today is January 13th and I have approximately 23 days left until the little guy's due date. As far as I'm concerned, he can make his big debut NOW! I didn't forget that the last month of pregnancy bites (I mean how could I - I just went through this with Payton!) but I did forget how truly uncomfortable I was.

Sleeping is a joke. I can not lay on my back or my stomach. And I can only lay on one side for so long, then I have to flip to the other side. Watching me flip has got to be similar to watching a whale sun himself on the beach. Seriously, it takes everything in my being to lift myself up, turn my belly to the other side, relax, and then get comfortable again. Imagine that then adding a loudly snoring husband next to me. Oh and don't forget the lovely pregnancy hormones that raise my body temperature so that even a normally cool 60 degree bedroom feels like a freakin' oven! Blech. I'm so over it.

I'm really not going to bitch about every aspect of my life and how this pregnancy is affecting it, really. I am very greatful to have a fertile body, don't get me wrong. I just wish God made it a little easier on us once we did conceive. After all, we are supposed to push this tiny human out of our bodies after hours of contractions and pain. WTF?

The nursery is progressing. Walls are painted, dresser is finished and ready, crib arrived, blackout shades are up. My problem is that the room itself is so tiny, nothing fits properly or looks right. I'll have to take pictures tonight to show you. Still looking for a matching rug and some art for the walls. And I wish the laminate light wood colored bookshelf matched either the dresser or the crib, but I think I'm SOL with that too. And really, it doesn't really matter - we'll hopefully move this summer and I can buy some new pieces for each room anyway. But still.

My Magic 8 ball told me that it is "for certain" that I'll be having Ryan this week and maybe even on Saturday. I'm hoping it's right.