3 months, 1 day

Yesterday was Tucker's three month birthday, if there is such a thing. Me-oh-my these months have flown by. I had no idea how little free time you had with two kids, although it is getting a little better now that nursing is calming down a bit (like every three hours, instead of every 90 minutes). Plus Tuck is getting to the point where he can just sit and watch what's going on around him, instead of needing to be held every minute. And he loves it. I think he's our little hoot owl--just taking it all in with those big blues (Yes, blue!).

I also just starting him to daycare two days a week so I can get things going for tax season. It was nice bonding time bringing him to the office with me, but no so productive. So it's crazy fitting it into two days a week, but it's nice feeling like I'm not doing both things--hanging with baby and working--halfway. That was more of a source of stress than I realized, I think.

Other than the crazy amount of chores that come with my two rascals, life is really good. We are settling into kind of a routine on days home. I am doing my best to keep up with Ainsley and plan activities now that the weather is turning colder. She is a ball of energy, that one. And so sassy! It's like her creativity and compassion and curiosity are huge, and her sass has kept pace. I suppose it's a way of feeling out her independence (of which there appears to be no shortage). But she is just such a cool kid. And she loves her brother. We moved his carseat into the middle of the backseat so my mother-in-law could fit in our car, and Ainsley just tickles and talks to him the whole time we go anywhere. And wipes his drool (of which there appears to be no shortage).

And Tucker. He's just a sweetie pie, and so mellow. He's started sleeping from about 11:00 to 6:00 most nights, sometimes longer. And I lean over to get him out of bed and it's just never ending smiles. Sometimes I'm afraid he's not eating enough because I'm not sure he'd even complain about it (Mike thinks I'm crazy to think that, as both the chub on this kid, and the mustard poops, are abundant).

The whole family-of-four thing overall - it really is a great feeling. I mean, I have my spaz attack moments. The twenty minutes before we have to leave the house for anything are never my finest. But really I feel so blessed. It's funny - I take so long to adjust to these things. I obviously loved Tucker when he was born, and would have gone feral on any threat in the blink of an eye, but I can't say I was enjoying every moment. Mostly I was just trying to get through the days. I remember being like that with Ainsley, too. It just takes me awhile to settle in. I need to start getting a little bit of sleep. I need a little bit of a routine. I need to get to know this little person so I'm not always guessing at what the problem is. But after those chips fall into place, the daily joys start coming fast, and eventually most of the initial anxiety falls away.