Meeska, Mooska, Mickey Mouse!

Kyle and the boys recently accompanied me on a business trip. I'd like to say that it's because they miss me when I'm gone, but they tagged along since the hotel I was staying at was across the street from Disneyland. While I spent most of my time at a convention center, the boys soaked up the California sun.

We were able to spend a day at Disney as a family and it was fabulous. John Ross and I rode about every ride we could possibly go on. We got to visit Disney's playhouse where all the boys' favorites were - Mickey and the gang, Handy Manny, the Little Einsteins and Tigger & Pooh. The highlight for John Ross was meeting Goofy and playing at his house. Judd lit up like a Christmas tree when he got to see Mickey Mouse up close. He was truly amazed... after all, Mickey has been in his vocabulary for most of his short life.

Disneyland is truly a magical place and I feel fortunate that the boys got to experience it. They are young, but we took lots of pictures hoping that they will trigger memories as they get older.

Help! Who is this boy?

And where did he come from?! Do not get me wrong, I absolutely adore John Ross and he's definitely a Mama's Boy, but some days I do not know where the child came from! He is Mr. Attitude and likes to dictate who does what, when and where they do it. This applies to everyone in our house, including the dogs. I had been warned that 3-year-olds are opinionated, but didn't realize that the person who coined "terrible twos" had clearly never met a 3-year-old.

Any advice? I have a feeling that many parents have or are going through this and I'm worried that the advice is going to be "ride it out"... I just hope this ride isn't long!

On a bright note, John Ross was recently discharged from his speech therapy. He made leaps and bounds with his progress and is able to express himself more clearly. We are thrilled with his growth even if it has enhanced his new found sassiness.

Bye, Bye Binky!

We are on day 5 without a pacifier! Judd was still using his pacifier for naps and bedtime and we had been debating when it was time to pull the plug. After receiving a pep talk from our pediatrician on Friday, I was inspired to begin the battle. So Friday night we hid all of the pacifiers and crossed our fingers. Surprisingly it turns out that he wasn't as dependent on it as I thought (or as dependent as I was)! He has a very loved "lovey" that he is using as his crutch. It's just enough to keep him content. While he did fuss in protest at the beginning, he is doing great and I believe he is a fully-recovered paci addict... five days and counting.

I love you, you know

Birthday Boys

Happy Birthday John Ross and Judd! We celebrated the boys' birthdays with a Cowboys & Indians birthday party. Both boys looked the part in their cowboy hats, western shirts, jeans and cowboy boots. Most of the Missouri clan was able to join us in addition to some of our Iowa friends. We had such a fun time playing in the backyard at the Wild West Show (our bounce house) and chasing the Big Chief (Daddy) around the teepee. We even had some pony races on stick horses.

Judd had an eventful 1st year. As of October 7th, he has 8 teeth, is cruising everywhere and busy being a chatter box. His favorite words are "Daisy" (our dog), "Dada", "dog", "ball" and "no". He has learned that squealing gets an immediate reaction out of Mom and Dad since it usually means he is holding his ground with John Ross. He eats anything that you put in front of him, but is no doubt a fruit fanatic. His favorite treats are Dum Dum suckers. I swear he can sniff them out and will do anything in his power to put one in his mouth - wrapper and all. He's most definitely a Mama's boy, BUT won't miss an opportunity to give his Daddy a big grin and hug. After all, Daddy is the one who put his ride-on roadster together that he has driven around the house for miles.

John Ross had a life-changing year. Doctors were able to correctly diagnose his hypoglycemia and our lives have been different ever since. His health is stable, he is feeling great and making huge strides with his speech (which had been delayed). He continues to love music and got a new and bigger guitar for his 3rd birthday. His latest song of choice that he sings and strums to is Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours". He is still a swimming fool. He spent most of the summer in swim trunks, so we are continuing that experience through the fall. He is taking swimming lessons at a local YMCA and doing well. The first class was an absolute disaster... he was the kid that got kicked out for not following directions. Thankfully he is not the afraid and timid child, but unfortunately the polar opposite. He had his own agenda with no fear of the water. His participation has improved immensely.

We are so thankful to have such wonderful little boys. They keep us busy and life is crazy, but we wouldn't have it any other way. The two become closer each day and it's so fun to watch the hugs and kisses and John Ross rubbing his brother's back when he thinks no one is looking. Can't wait to see what next year will bring!

I'm a Big Boy Now!

John Ross and the potty chair have become friends... finally! Kyle and I decided that this past weekend was THE weekend to get John Ross potty trained. We had a rare weekend at home and with Kyle home on Monday, we had 3 days to achieve our mission. Almost two dozen pairs of underwear and a HUGE bag of Skittles later, I can proudly say - Mission Accomplished!

By the third day, it just clicked for him and he's been doing great ever since. He had one accident on Monday. We were nervous about staying on a roll once he went back to daycare today. He's continuing to use the potty at daycare and we're so proud of him.

I promised him about a month ago that he could have a brand new tractor once he started using the potty and he hasn't let me forget. Looks like we'll be hitting Tractor Supply this week!

We Have a Crawler!

Judd is finally crawling! To give the kid some credit, he has been mobile for awhile. He had his own style of scooting on his bottom to where he needed to go. Eventually he turned into a tripod using an inward-pointed leg as his "rudder". As of Wednesday, he has all four limbs parallel and moving in the same direction. It's very exciting, but I didn't realize how much baby proofing we need to do. John Ross is old enough, we've let a few things go and his toys have tiny parts that offer a new challenge.

Judd is also moving on to table food. He wasn't a big fan of the thick-textured baby foods, so we started giving him table food a few weeks ago and he is quite enthusiastic about that. Today he ate everything from meat to several types of fruits and was super excited about peas of all things.

He just cut his 8th tooth and sat through his 2nd haircut. He's growing so fast... it's a little heartbreaking for Mommy!

Pink Eye Almost Leads to Pink Slip

So, yesterday morning John Ross was diagnosed with Pink Eye and was not allowed to attend daycare for 24 hours. I took him to the office with me to do a few things and grab my laptop, so that I could work from home. He behaved so well! He stayed in my cubicle and played with a truck and some ears of corn I have sitting on my shelf. I was getting ready to walk over to a co-worker's cubicle when John Ross bolted down the long row of cubicles. He ran to the end of the row and took a hard right and the chase was on. Before I could grab him, he ran right into the office of our Vice President of North America Sales - giggling the whole way. He ran into the office and jumped into a cushioned corner chair. I kept repeating to myself, "Alejandro (the VP), please do not be there." He was.

I was mortified and the VP was quite surprised. He had a slight grin and puzzled look as if he was thinking, "who is this child and where did he come from?" I apologized and grabbed John Ross. Alejandro then commented how cute he was and got up out of his chair to find out what his name was and how old he was. Either he was charmed or wanted to blackball him from ever getting a job at Pioneer. I continued to apologize as I carried my child under my arm and out the door. He told me not to apologize and that he enjoyed young visitors.

I was so thankful that he had a good sense of humor about the fact that I have no control of my child. I was also thankful that I showed up this morning and there was no pink slip on my desk.

Seis De Mayo

Judd is celebrating Cinco de Mayo with seis dientes! Judd has 6 teeth total now. His upper "fangs" came in first and over the weekend, the middle two popped through. He'll be eating corn on the cob soon enough!

Judd's favorite thing to do is sit up and play with toys - especially if they're John Ross'! He's at such a cute stage with babbling and discovering everything he can get his hands on, which includes kitchen utensils, paper, Mommy's hair, etc. The child is never bored! He's riding in his big boy carseat and it's so cute to watch him look out the window now that he's high enough to do so.

Recently, he and John Ross have really bonded. They are now taking baths together, which leads to lots of giggles and splashing. John Ross is getting to be more helpful in making sure Judd has toys to play with and helps him push the buttons. We keep a step stool next to the crib, because John Ross likes to talk to Judd before he goes to bed. They are definitely fun to watch.

We'll be taking a plane ride to St. Louis in a couple of weeks. It will be Judd's first flight. Let's keep our fingers crossed that at least one of the boys sleep in the plane!

Bye, bye seizures!

Some time ago, I wrote that I would not mention John Ross' epilepsy on this blog ever again. It turns out that won't be a problem. After a week of testing and a weekend hospital stay, John Ross has been diagnosed with hyperinsulinemia (his body produces too much insulin). It is severe enough that it was causing his seizures. We still don't know why, but we're thankful to know what we're treating for once. Most importantly we know how to prevent his blood sugar level from getting too low, which will stop seizure activity. With a change in diet and a new medicine, we believe we will get his hypoglycemia under control. Thank you to everyone who continues to pray for our brave boy.

John Ross Breaks a Record

I was just informed that John Ross broke his own pancake-eating record this morning. He is a huge fan of the mini Eggo pancakes - in fact "pancake" was one of his first two syllable words he said. He must have been hungry, because he ate 11 this morning. Kyle said he just kept asking for more. That's the big newsflash from the Malter household!

Giggles

Check out this video of Judd giggling. The best part is John Ross trying to appease Kyle with a Judd-like response at the end.

Chunky Monkey, Judd, Has Two Teeth!

I'm not sure what it is about the second child, but they seem to grow too fast! Judd is not letting his Mommy enjoy the baby stage for long. On Thursday, during a wellness checkup, I found out he weighed 21 lbs. I noticed he was getting heavy, so that explains why! Only one pound to go before he's out of his bucket seat. It's a good thing he's starting to sit on his own since we'll be changing his carseats in the coming weeks. No more convenience of placing his bucket seat into a shopping cart. I had my system that's been working so well with the two boys. I'm going to have to come up with a new plan - if only Target had two seats in a cart...

Judd's second tooth popped up on Friday! He'd been one fussy boy (hence the dr. appt on Thursday) and once he cut that second tooth, he was back to his happy self.

Another big milestone happened this morning. Judd held his bottle for his whole feeding all by himself. That was a little sad - he's becoming more independent. He tried sweet potatoes for the first time last week. He seems to like them, but overall he's just not enthusiastic towards his cereal and veggies like he his for his bottles. I know I shouldn't worry though - at 21 lbs. he clearly is eating plenty!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Here's a photo of my little leprechauns (aka Mom's Lucky Charms). This was taken right before we left the house this morning. I tried to take the sippy cup out of the frame, but John Ross wasn't having any of that. He's a little grumpy if he doesn't get his milk in the morning. I figure it will be the same with his coffee cup in 30 years! Of course, Judd was all sweetheart.

My goal is to have a really nice photo of the two of them in the same picture by the time Judd turns one. I have 7 months to go... Lord knows I've been trying for the past 5 months!

Stop and Smell the Fire Hydrant

Yesterday afternoon we decided to take full advantage of some warm weather (since it's a rarity up here in Iowa) and take a stroll around the neighborhood. All six of us were ready for the walk, except for John Ross who wanted to go his own direction as usual. To distract him, we asked him if he wanted to help Daddy walk the dogs. Kyle gave him Daisy's leash (who is the best and most tolerant dog in the world). Boy, did John Ross think he was big stuff walking the dog just like Daddy! He would look up at Kyle grinning ear to ear. So off we went - Kyle with Annie, John Ross with Daisy and I brought up the rear with Judd in his stroller. (And yes, we do look like our own little parade when we take a walk.) I had the best seat in the house for what I was about to see. Daisy, like most dogs, likes to sniff her surroundings. Naturally Daisy would sniff a fire hydrant, which I didn't think anything of until John Ross followed her lead and and leaned in to sniff it, too. At one point, we had to stop and wait, because John Ross was on all fours sniffing the grass with Daisy. I truly am amazed with the way a two-year-old mind works. It seemed perfectly normal for him to want to see what he was missing out on since Daisy was so intrigued. As a mom, I am finding that these simple little moments are absolutely endearing and priceless.

So, next time you pass by a fire hydrant, seize the moment like a two-year-old. You never know what you might be missing!

Judd Has a Tooth!

Judd cut his first tooth yesterday morning! It's on his bottom and we have a hunch it's neighbor will pop up soon. He is constantly chewing and Motrin is making a noticeable difference with him. I'm convinced something is still going on. Stay tuned...

Judd will be 5 months on Saturday, so he's not wasting any time!

JINX!

I was worried about jinxing John Ross' seizure-free streak and sure enough he had one today. In the last posting I mentioned how long he has gone without a seizure. That was the first and last time I'll mention his seizures in this blog.

He's doing just fine and I'm still thankful it's been 4 months (today in fact) since he's had one. That's a record for him.

Happy New Year?

I realize I am failing miserably with keeping up with postings. Who knew two boys would be so time consuming?! The last few months have been quite busy and eventful. First of all, Judd was diagnosed with RSV the day after Christmas, so he spent the holiday on a nebulizer. Other than that, we had a great time seeing family and spending some time together.

In early January, John Ross was admitted into Children's Mercy Hospital (KC) for a 5-day EEG study. His doctor is trying to understand his epilepsy better. While the study did not capture any seizures, his doctor decided to take him off his meds. We were thrilled with that outcome alone. I hope I'm not jinxing him, but he's coming up on 4 months without having a seizure. That's a record for him! Needless to say, John Ross is doing quite well!

Judd was baptized in January. He looked so cute in his white outfit and didn't fuss once during the ceremony. The weather caused for unfavorable road conditions and most of our family couldn't make it. Thank goodness his godparents (Uncle Tyler and Aunt Daphne) were in, so that we could go ahead with the special occasion. Hudson and John Ross had full run of the church after Mass since the four adults were involved with the actual baptism. I think God must have sent a guardian angel to keep those two out of trouble.

John Ross and Judd have a new cousin! Michaela (Brandon and Alesa Ann's first) was born in January. She's going to be one tough cookie with 3 boy cousins all close in age. We have a similar situation on the Malter side, their cousin Molly is outnumbered 4 to 1.

February brought more snow and some new milestones. Judd rolled over, slept through the night for the first time and started eating cereal. He's growing so fast! Judd is really into his jump-a-roo. Santa brought it for him and he loves it! John Ross has a cow obsession - not sure what that's about. He's his father's son, that's for sure. He also loves to sing. Apparently that's his favorite activity at daycare and he continues singing until bed time.

I'll try to do better with the postings - I promise!

December Update

Judd just turned two-months-old yesterday. At today's check-up he weighed in at 14 pounds and 8 ounces. What a big boy! He has really changed a lot in the past 30 days. We are beginning to see his personality and he just loves to smile and "coo" at us. (Be sure to check out the photos of him by clicking on the slideshow on the left.)

Our family is preparing for Christmas and for Mommy to go back to work. Cortney officially goes back to work on December 16th. Kyle is staying busy with work and he is still enjoying his new job.

We plan to enjoy a Missouri Christmas and hope to see as many of our family and friends as possible. This will be such a fun Christmas with a second son and John Ross getting into the holiday spirit, especially since we recently visited Santa Claus. Both boys were great with the jolly fellow and John Ross really liked Santa's beard. We're lucky that we have good experiences with Santa - every year we cringe and wonder if this will be the year for a meltdown! We credit the Santa that we have visited for the past three years. He's just wonderful with the kids.

In January we will be admitting John Ross into the Children's Mercy hospital in KC for a video EEG study. We hope to learn more about John Ross' epilepsy. He will be there for a week and we hope the doctors get the information they need. Please say a little prayer for John Ross and his doctors.

We are so thankful for our friends and family, especially this time of year. We feel so blessed to have two beautiful and healthy children. May God bless you this holiday season.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Eventful 30 Days!

Judd is already one-month-old, which is hard to believe. It seems the past 30 days have been a bit of blur. We are still trying to find our daily groove, but we are all doing great. A little sleep-deprived, but doing great!

Despite our adjustments, we really are having a ball with our two little guys. John Ross has particularly been enjoying the flow of company that's been coming through our home over the past few weeks. He likes the extra attention that's for sure! We had a fun evening trick-or-treating. Judd stayed back at the house with Daddy to hand out candy and Mommy took John Ross out and about. John Ross really got into picking out his own candy and putting it in his bag. In addition to trick-or-treating we all attended two Halloween parties, which was a lot of fun. We also went to a wedding reception last weekend. Mommy and Daddy are learning the difference of playing "one-on-one" versus "zone". Just last week we got their portraits taken, so hopefully we'll have some new photos to share soon.

We're off to Missouri for the coming weekend. Judd and John Ross are going to get in some family time while Kyle and Cortney attend the MU/K-State football game. Go Tigers!

Also, be sure to check out the photos to see how much Judd has changed over the past month.