Superman Turns Three!

Three years old.

Yep.

But with the sadness that my baby boy is growing up so quickly comes the excitement of the party! And I have to say that this was his best one yet. Jamie and I had a blast, and I hope that the rest of our family and friends feel the same!

Ever since last year's birthday gift from "Uncle B" (Captain America stuff), Aiden's obsession with super heroes has grown tremendously. I know way more than I ever knew I could know about super heroes, their affiliates, groups to whom they belong, villains, and their alter egos. And my kid? knows about twice as much as that. He now has an always growing (much to my chagrin) collection of super hero t-shirts. I will admit, though, that some are still cute. {Thank you, GAP and Old Navy} His closet holds a dress-up drawer where you can find everything you need in order to go fight crime and two drawers full of every figure that graces the aisles of Target or a commercial break on The Hub. The fact is: My kid can't get enough. He wants to get the bad guys 24/7, and if you agree to be his accomplice? Good luck getting out of it.

With that said, the theme for this year's party was a huge "DUH". We would celebrate SUPER HERO STYLE!

We even invited the guests to join in on the fun, and dress as their favorite hero or villain. We think dress up parties are kind of awesome. Actually, our family used to do them quite a bit, so we were all a little more than excited to bring it back.

After months of planning our "outfits" and Aiden going back and forth, back and forth about who we should all dress as, we finally made up our minds his mind! IT. WAS. SO. MUCH. FUN. Jamie and Aiden were originally dressing as Superman together, but they just don't make the adult costume for a 6 foot 2 man! Which I found kind of ironic. So instead, Jamie opted for the alter ego, Clark Kent. When we found the fedora, I was sold. We found Anna Scott's Wonder Woman onesie at Old Navy which was awesome! I had pinned it long ago, and was anticipating a long, drawn-out internet search. Aiden is a fan of the Super Hero Squad show, and I have been told since the beginning that I would be Miss Marvel, aka "Yellow Hair". Mind you, this is NOT the comic book Miss Marvel for the adult crowd. She's the one who wears clothes. We all had a great time shopping and putting the looks together, and I'm sure Jamie and I scored major cool points.

We weren't the only cool people, though. Batman and Robin were there, and they brought their Avenger friends, Captain America and Black Widow!

Among the other guests were Wonder Woman, a somewhat taller version of Captain America, a cute, mini Black Widow, and Batman and Catwoman! Aiden was so thrilled to see everyone dressed up as his favorite heroes! To say I loved seeing his reaction would be a major understatement.

 There were four different tables: Batman, Captain America, The Hulk, and Iron Man. The main table was decorated in honor of the Birthday Boy, Superman! There was a Superman cake, snacks, pizza, hero cupcakes, and even Kryptonite Cookies!

And Superman got everything his little superhero heart could wish for. And MORE! Seeing his little face light up was just about the sweetest and cutest thing ever!

After everything was opened, he had one last surprise from Mommy and Daddy...

A Spiderman Bicycle!

After gifts and cake, everyone went out for a swim, and even more fun was had! We are so beyond blessed to have family and friends that love our little boy as much as we do. Jamie and I were talking about it later that night, and both agreed that we had not had that much fun in a long time. 

I hope Aiden remembers each and every birthday, not because of the gifts, but because of who was there to celebrate along with him. He is so loved. And I am glad he knows that.

Happy Birthday, Little Man! We love you!

My First 2 Weeks {As A Mommy of Two}

Coming Home
When we came home that Friday afternoon, I was so excited to get settled in. After about an hour of unpacking, laundry, and last minute nesting of baby items, I simply couldn't wait to put her in all things soft and pink. Aiden couldn't wait to show her his toys and have her put on the floor to play with him. We had to explain that she wasn't quite ready for that. He was content with just giving her kisses. Later that evening, family came by to visit. The next couple of days all blur together - a mixture of visitors, photos, gifts, and lots and LOTS of food! Not to mention sleeping and feeding in two hour increments.

Aiden
We were so blessed to have so many family members help out with Aiden. It was good to have that quality alone time with Anna Scott, and I think equally good for him to have more attention those first couple of days. As much as I missed him, I knew it was important for me to give 100% to bonding with baby girl. I also didn't want him to feel left out or ignored amongst all of the craziness. The first day that we all woke up together (and I was all on my own) was not half as stressful as I thought it would be. Aiden was more than eager to help out with anything and everything, and did not seem the slightest bit phased by all of the baby holding going on. I still made him snuggle with me anyway. I have to say he has been such a great help, going to get diapers, throw things away, getting her her paci when needed, etc. When he does help out, he calls himself (super hero of the day) before dashing off to his destination. The current top three are Superman, Green Lantern, and Batman. I try hard everyday to give him one on one time during her morning snoozes. We play in his room (his favorite) with super heroes galore! He is even sure to get me a pillow to sit on each time because he knows that it hurts to sit on the floor - such a sweet, sweet son.

Survival
The nights have been fine. Those first few days were hard on me physically. Once the pain meds ran out and the milk came in, OUCH. (Sorry for the TMI) Add to that tiny naps in place of a straight 8 hour night's sleep and raging hormones, and you have a crazy woman on your hands. Poor Jamie. But after those first couple of weeks, I noticed the weepies going away. Anna Scott started taking a little more each feeding which gave me longer stretches of sleep, and I started napping when Aiden napped (whenever I could). Now, we have a nice little routine. And most importantly, it has wiggle room. Which keeps me sane. The only thing I'm still working toward is evening time with Jamie. When I put Aiden and Anna Scott to bed, I dive in as well. I'm usually dead to the world around 7 pm everyday. I'm hoping that as her nighttime feedings stretch out, I'll be able to swing some primetime TV or a movie night with the hubs.

Our Routine
Our typical day begins with a feeding around 6 am. I try to squeeze in a little extra sleep before Aiden crawls into bed with us around 7:30. When that happens, I get up, pump, and fix Anna Scott's bottle for later. I get Aiden dressed, make up his bed, and we head downstairs to make breakfast. We spend our time with Mickey Mouse, get some cuddle time, and Mommy gets her caffeine. When she gets up, I feed her while he plays and like I said earlier, she goes to sleep and we play together in his room. SOMETIMES, I sneak in a little of The View or Barefoot Contessa. Then we have lunch and naptime. Mommy's favorite! If I'm dead tired, I'll take a nap. If not, I'll stare at her, take photos, blog (like today), or watch some Friday Night Lights. When he gets up, we get a snack and play. Then we just sort of do whatever until Daddy gets home. Last night, I added a relaxing, candlelit bath to my routine before going to bed. That was a brilliant idea. Slept like a baby. In four to five hour intervals, of course.

Overall, this has been the best time of my life. I feel so complete. I wake up everyday eager and ready for what the day holds. I go to bed each night so thankful for the day I was given. Being a mommy of two has to be the most fulfilling and rewarding experience ever. Each day is the best day of my life.

Nursery/Big Boy Room Reveal

When we picked out this house, I was not even pregnant with Aiden yet. A baby was part of the plan, of course, but we didn't think about two babies. We just were thinking one step at a time, I guess. So, when the plan for baby number two came along, we looked at other houses, but never put ours on the market. I went through a few panic attacks, not gonna lie. Where will we store everything? How will I decorate? What if it's a girl? But, when we found out it was in fact a girl...I calmed down. Not sure what happened, but all of a sudden, I was content with where we are. I was bound and determined to make it work. I started gutting the walk-in closet, organizing storage bins for the attic, and making room for baby.

It worked! There is room for everything. A place for everything. Everything (most of the time) in its place. The next challenge was decor. I had always pictured white furniture for a girl. Problem #1. The manufacturer of Aiden's convertible crib/full size bed discontinued the conversion rails. Problem #2. Our solution? Use the espresso crib (until she has her own room-then I'll get the white) and purchase a headboard for Aiden. We still haven't done that by the way, but it'll get done. As for color scheme, I went through thousands of ideas, pinterest inspirations, and browsed the internet forever. Finally? I just decided to do what I wanted for him on "his side" and what I wanted to her on "her side". I didn't think about them blending well or whatever. I didn't want to compromise. And I think it worked out fine.

We did need something in the middle of the room to divide it in some way. That's where my contractor husband stepped in. He built a big deep-freezer-you-can-fit-a-dead-body-in-it-size toy box. We chose white instead of espresso so that it had that built-in look and became part of the room as opposed to another dark piece of furniture. And above that, we framed two baby stats printables. I got the layout from pinterest and just used word art in Microsoft Word to tweak the font sizes.

Aiden, obviously is in love with super heroes right now. So, around Christmas, when I came across these Batman sheets, I knew he had to have them! KiKi got them for him for Christmas, and Mommy and Daddy got him his big boy bed. Thankfully, Uncle B and G-Daddy and RaRa donated a super soft brown bedding set. That saved a lot of cash-o-la! Thanks, family. We moved his name down, which was super easy because we had originally "hung" them using 3M velcro strip thingies. But (lesson learned) when removing...be sure to pull down, not out. Or else, husband might get upset. Add a stuffed Spidey and Captain America? Done-zo.

The flipside (or actual side) or the quilt

As for Anna Scott's side, I went crazy with my mom in Pottery Barn Kids. After I had the bedding picked out, the rest was easy. If it was pink, I bought it. I added the pinterest pom pons hanging from the ceiling for extra fun! The same family friend that made Aiden's letters made some matching ones for Anna Scott, and that was that. We now have ourselves a fully decorated (minus Aiden's headboard and possibly a big shelf/ledge under the baby stats), fully functional nursery/big boy room, or as I like to call it the Bursery. It was a fun challenge, and I love the finished product. I can't wait to see them playing together on the floor!

Ahhh, the Beauty of a Snow Day!

Well, it's here. The first snow day of the year! After watching the radar all day yesterday, and obsessively tapping "refresh" on my phone last night waiting to see the magic words, I gave up and went to sleep, fully prepared to face the next day. Disappointed, but prepared. Then, the most wonderful thing happened. Jamie woke me up with the news. We were out! YES!!!

I love all days off, but there is just something extra special about a snow day. I think it's the fact that it's a surprise. Kind of like the gift you get that you NEVER EXPECTED. It makes it much more appreciated and cherished. What was going to be a day of being sick at work, counting down the hours until I could come home, pop some benadryl and collapse onto the bed has turned into a day packed with cuddles, Yo Gabba Gabba, coloring books, and playing with Batman toys! I am so thankful for this little blessing that came in the form of black ice. I think God knew we needed it.

Now if you'll excuse me, my baby boy is asking me to sit with him and "pay".

Pretty Cool Are the Jedi

Recently, my two (and a half) year old has become fascinated with a galaxy far, far away. He has a set of really cute Star Wars characters that he got a while ago. We tried explaining who they were when he got them, but he would just passively play with them from time to time. Well, in the past couple of days, he's become a fanatic. He calls them all his "Storm Troopers". He now knows the name of each, takes them everywhere with him, and has watched two full Star Wars "episodes" (which he also calls "Storm Troopers"). And if he's watching it, so is Mommy.

At first, {eh} it was alright. I paid quasi-attention to it while doing something else, playing on my phone, wrapping gifts, etc. But at some point in the week, I have been sucked in. I even found myself shushing Aiden and Jamie last night while watching Return of the Jedi. Who knew? I have googled more characters and questions than I even knew existed in the movies. And, on more than one occasion, have had to explain something to Jamie. For example, the tragedy of Anakin's transition from "The Chosen One" to "Darth Vader" and why his ghost was young instead of old. Aiden even knows that Darth Vader is a bad guy, but still good on the inside. ha.


Yes, I realize this makes me a weird person, but I like to think of it as simultaneously making me a cool mom. Even though I believe the term COOL MOM is an oxymoron. But still.

So I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited about the possibility of Aiden opening some Star Wars toys this Christmas. Or if I said I haven't searched On Demand and DVR for the other movies I have yet to see. Or if I told you I don't do all of the voices and sound effects (even when not prompted). And if I denied secretly wishing I had Jedi powers. Because Star Wars is cool, okay?

May the force be with you.

Christmas through Aiden's Eyes

Christmas is absolutely, positively my favorite time of the year. I love the anticipation, the smells, the music, the food, the family, the hustle and bustle, and most of all, the traditions. I have held onto my childhood traditions without fail throughout adulthood, so when Aiden was born, I was excited to continue them without feeling somewhat silly in front of the husband. The past two Christmases were great, don't get me wrong, but Aiden still didn't grasp the whole concept.

This year?

Haha...so into it! I. Love. It.

It started a few weeks ago when Santa sent us the Elf on the Shelf. We read the book, and all he wanted to do when we finished was to open it and get the elf out. But, of course, we can't touch him because he might lose his magic! Later that day, the elf (creatively named "Elf" by Aiden) had found his way out of the box! The look on his face? Priceless. He was sold. My son got his first experience of Christmas magic. And every morning since, as soon as those little feet hit the floor downstairs, he walks around so eagerly, looking up/down/all around for Elf. And when he finds him, you hear the sweetest, most energetic "WOOOOK!", and he lights up just like the first time. It rocks. He gets that the elf is here to watch him and report to Santa, so you better believe every time he finishes a complete meal or helps me in the kitchen, he makes sure it is known! "Elf! I eat all my food!" He also finds time to remind Elf that he wants a Batman helicopter. So stinkin' cute.

Elf may be the cutest tradition we have going on, but it's not the only one. So far, Aiden has helped pick out gifts, wrap gifts, select and decorate the tree, and watch all of the Christmas classics. Right now, his favorites have been "Turboman" (Jingle All the Way) and Frosty the Snowman--which made him so upset the first time he watched it because Frosty melted. "Mommy, the snowman's gone" (insert the most pitiful pouty/sad expression) So sweet. We have yet to visit Santa, but I have a feeling that will be a post all its own.

I always knew it would be fun celebrating Christmas with my children, but I NEVER knew it would be this thrilling. Witnessing that innocent trust and the look of "Wow" on his face melts me every time.

Christmas morning cannot come soon enough!