Life with Makena

I can't believe four months have gone by and I haven't blogged much about Makena. I definitely want to remember what my babies are like at each stage and putting it down here is the only way I'll remember. I've gone back to past posts about Karis and realized how much I forget. It's been tough to get a quiet moment to be at the computer for an extended amount of time. Each day is always busy with plenty of things demanding my attention.

Makena is living up to her name -- happy one. She smiles and coos and laughs often. I love when she falls asleep on me at the end of the day and as she's drifting off into deep slumber she starts to laugh. It's such a great way to end the day! My favorite time with her has become during her last feeding around 7 pm. Derek is upstairs putting Karis to bed and the house is quiet. Makena and I hang out on the couch and work on her bottle. We take burping breaks and we end up "talking" and smiling at each other for quite awhile.

Makena's personality makes her a pretty easy-going baby. It took me awhile to realize that at first because each day was so busy and crazy.

It was difficult to get Makena on a schedule. Unlike her sister who was like clock work, Makena's days were quite disorganized for the first few months. She slept for longer periods during the night and to make up for it she would nurse more often during the day. Each day's schedule was different so it made it hard for me to get out since I couldn't nurse Makena in public (with Karis running around loose!). However, her lack of schedule made her more flexible which was a huge blessing. She often had to wait to be fed while I got Karis' lunch ready or changed a dirty diaper.

At four months, she is finally on a schedule! I stopped nursing Makena when she was about 3 1/2 months old. It was a hard decision to make but there were so many reasons why I decided to do it. Nursing Makena was never easy so it was very taxing me and very time consuming.

Makena started to skip a couple night feedings at 8 weeks. She did it for a couple days and then did it consistently at 2 months. Then, at about 3 months she started waking up more at night. I assumed it was because of a growth spurt -- at her 4-month appointment today she weighed in at 16 pounds which puts her in the 93rd percentile! Just recently she has gone back to only one feeding at night. Phew!

My biggest challenge with her right now continues to be the feedings. Even with bottles, she still has issues. She gets gassy and spits up a lot so it's hard for her to finish a bottle. Each night it takes about two hours to get her to finish her extra-large feeding and down for the night. I plan on switching formulas to see if it makes a difference.

She rolled over about a month ago for the first time. She now rolls over and wakes herself up. She loves to show off her strength and stand up. She gets so proud of herself when she does.

One thing Derek and I are enjoying is having an infant that actually likes car rides. If you've been a reader of our blog for awhile now, you might remember how we mentioned Karis used to act like she was in a torture chamber whenever she was in her car seat (click here to read post). Makena doesn't mind the car seat (the same one Karis used) at all!

It's also been much easier to get Makena down for a nap. Karis would always fight taking naps. Makena does too at times, but for the most part it's been pretty easy to put her down.

Here are a few pics of Makena at 3 months and at 4 months.

3 months:

4 months:

Oh, how she's grown!

Time to brag on Karis a bit

Before I brag on Karis, I have to set the stage.

Since Makena has been born, life has been quite busy and hectic as one might assume. Add to it an office move, a new pastor, a trip to the hospital for Lena's back, 4 celebrations in 9 days (Lena's birthday, Father's Day, our anniversary, and then my birthday), one bigger than usual birthday party for my 40th, extra consulting hours for Lena, co-workers on vacation, and holidays (Mother's Day, Memorial and Fourth of July) to name a few things.

I am fighting a pretty gnarly sinus and now chest infection at the moment. I haven't had good sleep in a week (and Lena even longer... like 4 months). I have all kinds of stress from a few once-a-month meetings this weekend, and being part of the wedding party for a friend getting married all day Saturday.

So today, I prayed for strength and peace while I cared for the girls all day. I knew, absolutely knew that I could not make it through today on my own. Normally, I begin thinking I can do it all by myself. One day of being wise is a good start. After I prayed I looked Karis in the eyes and told her I was sick and wanted her to do her best to be good today for daddy. She was that and then some.

She proactively played by herself. She didn't hang onto me nor constantly want me to hold her. She didn't get jealous while I held and cared for Makena. She even put away many of her toys after playing with them. I enjoyed watching her make her similar figurines play together. I was surprised that she could even find them amongst all the other varieties.

My highlight was shortly after Makena fell asleep this afternoon. Karis went to the mattress on the floor in Makena's room and patted the pillow - that indicates I was to lay my head down with her. But she stopped me and motioned for me to help pull down the blanket cover first. She has never used a blanket, only watched us. Then she motioned for me to pull it back up onto both of us. She pointed at me and said "da." Then she pointed to a small, unoccupied space on the pillow and said "ma." I said "Mommy is at work" and she quickly replied "yah." The she put the side of her head on the pillow so she could face me. And she smiled at me.

Karis is always on the go. She doesn't ever walk anywhere... she is always running from point to point even in the house. For her to slow down and relax is amazing. I am thankful for the precious moment that I was able to share with her today. I will cherish that moment for a looooong time.

The Best Part of Working ...

... is coming home to this:

When I got home from work yesterday, instead of just putting Makena in her crib for a nap, I laid down with her until she fell asleep. I just watched her sleep and enjoyed the moment. I don't get to do that too often, but I wish I did.

Some recent Pics

Karis dancing away at a friend's birthday party.

Little Korean girl.

Santa Ana Zoo on Memorial Day

We stopped for a family shot. Not bad for a self-portrait.

The little princess. Thanks Uncle David and Aunt Penny for the outfit!

Kids are exhausting! Especially when one parent hurts her back and is in bed for three days.

Karis has become quite good with the remotes.

She can turn on the TV, record random shows, and change settings.

Update on the Sisterhood

If you see Makena...

Karis is never too far away. She's either burping her:

Or, shoving... I mean, giving her a bottle:

Sometimes she's giving her a hug:

...or a kiss on the head:

And her newest thing is brushing her hair (with a toothbrush):And Makena just takes it all in.

The only frustrating part is when I'm trying to put Makena down for a nap. Karis wants to come with me to her room and she makes a lot of noise. It's not too conducive for Makena to fall asleep. If I tell her she has to leave the room, she'll fall to the ground and cry. If I take her out of the room and close the door, she'll lay on the ground outside the door and cry and she's just as loud as if she was inside the room. I try to sneak away to put Makena down or I'll tell Karis "I'll be right back; I'm going to put Makena in the crib." She seems to now understand that that means if she lets me do that, then I'll come back downstairs and [finally] get to play with her.

Karis is still having a hard time learning to share mommy, but she has been nicer to Makena. She still occasionally hits her (often at the end of the day when she's just about had it with me holding her) but now she'll give her things and turn the music on for Makena when she is sitting in the bouncer. It's a start.

Father's Day highlights

I had expected a very rough day as the Mr. Mom has been taking its toll on me physically (poor sleep overnight feeding Makena) as well as emotionally (again, I'm not a very patient dad). I figured that since it was day #3, I'd have even less in reserve with which to start the day. It wasn't the day I had expected, rather it was pretty great. The highlights are pretty much from Karis as Lena has still been pretty much immobile and Makena, well, she's just started to make expressions.

As I'm nearing 40, my memory continues to go. I knew of 3-4 things earlier today. But now as I type, I can recall only two.

When I took Karis out of the crib this afternoon, she held on tight and didn't want me to set her down. That is rare. Typically, she wants to be very independent. She pointed out things in her bedroom and I happily carried her to them enjoying this rare occasion. Then later while we were downstairs (and I was still carrying her), I picked up my work phone that has email on it. Most of the time, Karis will try to grab it from me. But today, she instead leaned down in front of my face (while I was carrying her up near my shoulder) so that we would make eye contact. When we locked eyes, she slowly moved her face in to mine and gave me a kiss. She did this not once... not twice... not three times... but four times. I cannot honestly say that I repeated it three additional times because I wanted to she if she'd repeat, but at least the 4th one was a test. =) It was so darned cute. She had a great big smile and big eyes each time, too.

The other item is just more of an observation. A couple of months ago, I lifted up Karis to the gymnastic rings hanging in our back yard. I forget the technical name, but she took one in each hand and kept herself in the hanging position all by herself for a few seconds. I had tried to see if she'd repeat on other occasions outside but to no avail. Well, today while we were at the park across the street I made another opportunity. They had these triangular shaped bars closely strung on one of the jungle gyms. So I lifted her up and let go of her to see what she'd do. She hung there all by herself for about 5 seconds. She's 27.5 pounds mind you. I was quite impressed.

If I recall the other highlights, I'll update.

My reminder: Thank the Lord that His mercies renew each morning.

Lamentations 3:21-23 reads:
²¹ Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:

²² Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.

²³ They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

Unexpected misfortune

If I don't post something now, I don't know when I will. And how tough it is to post after Lena's eloquent love letter to Karis at 18 months!

Lena's birthday was Thursday so I left work after lunch to help with the girls while she finished up some consulting work she was doing. Her sister Julie and family came down and were a big help taking Karis to the pool with them. I looked after Makena and we both caught some zzz's.

Friday Lena called me just before lunch. I figure she's checking in on me to see how I'm doing watching both girls. But she tells me that she is lying on the floor of her office unable to move and wants to know if she should call ambulance. I say "YES!"

Apparently she was having some pain in her back while standing, when back to her desk, needed assistance to sit down, then asked co-workers to lay her on the ground where she remained unable to move. They checked her out and released her with some pain medication and advice to rest. So I'm it for child care this weekend. Typically, one Friday workday a week is MORE than enough for me, so this is quite an opportunity.

So far, so good. Lots of friends, family, and c0-workers making themselves available to help. And I'm not turning it down (well, a few offers I had to decline because we already received help). We are very blessed to have such good friends, family, and c0-workers.

My takeaways:

• holy crud I could not be a full-time stay at home dad. At least with the kids this age. Again, deeper appreciation for Lena's ability to do this and for how God created women to better handle children.
  
• I am a very impatient person. Most people you ask would say that I'm very patient. But when it comes to crying children disobeying and unable to communicate, my patience drawer seems to start the day empty with nowhere to go.
  
• Karis is cute and a challenge at the same time. So many times I am conflicted on how to react to her. Adore her.
• Makena is beginning to show her personality. Smiles. Coos. Even some nonsense chatter. I remember bonding more with Karis once she hit this stage. Last night was my first time caring for and feeding Makena overnight. The bed in her room is quite comfy. And, I think I prefer nighttime care over evening time. I struggle when both girls need food, get messy, and scream out loud. Nighttime is more peaceful as Karis sleeps throughout the night and I can focus on Makena. If you're reading between the lines, I CANNOT MULTITASK with kiddos. Two mores nights of this and Mack and I should be bonded pretty tight.
  
• Lena, darling, please get healthy soon. And feel free in the future to say, "Ew, my back is starting to hurt. Do you mind....?" I'm sure I'll be quite compliant. You're a star honey. Thanks for all you do for our family.
  

To Karis, As You Turn 18 Months

Karis,

Today you turned 18 months old! There are days when I look at you and still think, "Wow, this child is mine." I am so blessed and thankful. When you were born, I never could have imagined how much joy you would bring into our lives.

You are such a happy baby with a great personality. You make me laugh and smile throughout each day. I have been praying since before you were born that you would love people deeply. I can see God molding your heart in such a way. You love meeting new people and interacting with them. Many of our friends tell us how you make them happy and they always look forward to seeing you. I know you will continue to bless those around you for the rest of your life. I pray that your life would usher many into the Kingdom.

You are our little monkey. You love to climb on tables, chairs, the couch and even your toys. It frustrates mommy and daddy to no end because we're afraid you're going to hurt yourself. Unfortunately, you don't have the same fear. When you do fall (it's not often b/c you have a pretty good balance and coordination) you don't cry for long, if at all. You would rather take the reprimand/discipline and a bump on the head over giving up your love to climb. We will be finding a gymnastics class for you SOON!

I love how you're always running from point A to point B (you hardly ever just walk around the house).

I love when you're trying to be silly to get us to laugh. I love the sound of your laughter and when you laugh at nothing at all (or so it seems). I love the ways you try to communicate with us with hand motions and sounds. You’re quite hesitant to try to say new words. It seems as if you want to make sure you say it right or not at all. Your favorite words are, “ma,” “da,” “ball,” “nigh-nigh” and “duck.”

I have loved seeing your relationship with daddy develop. Seeing him be such a good daddy to you has made me love him even more. He gets so excited to see you when he gets home from work, as do you. You now recognize the sound of his motorcycle coming down the street. I love hearing the two of you laugh together and read books. I love how you're so content being held in his arms. I have even heard daddy say, "Look at the princess, she's so pretty." Only his little girl could get him to say that! He loves having you with him to show you off. He is a proud daddy who loves you so much.

You love to kiss and hold your little sister. You still get frustrated when Makena takes up so much of my time. You show me where I can put her down so that I can be freed up to play with you!

You love to be outside and to go places. I love the way you grab your shoes on the way to the door.

Dogs continue to delight you. Fluffy is still your best friend.

Food is not much interest to you and you'd rather play than sit in the high chair. We continue to struggle to get you to eat enough during the day. I now bribe you with fruit to finish your dinner (usually brown rice, chicken and veggies). Or, I play make believe with a rubber duck or let you play with a soda can. Fruit is about the only thing you'll never turn down. You're finally getting your molars now so we hope you'll be able to broaden your food choices and get more excited about eating. I continue to try to give you only healthy food and am thankful that you still love your veggies and haven't eaten a lot of processed foods.

You still stick everything in your mouth. You love to brush your teeth and to have your hair blow-dried. You still put up a fight every time I try to trim your nails.

You throw tantrums, as do most kids your age, when you don't get your way. I'm hoping that you soon understand that when you fall to the ground and whine or run to the front door and cry, that it's not going to get you what you want. Then we can be done with them and move on. =)

It’s been so much fun watching you grow up and learning new things. You’re one smart cookie! I’m excited for you to become a little girl. Karis, I mean it with all my heart when I tell you each night when you go to bed that mommy loves you.

Today's Lesson on Sharing

I know there will be plenty of quarrels between Karis and Makena about sharing, so today I tried to teach Karis how to share things with her little sister. Makena sat happily in the bouncer and I brought over a small basket filled with little rattles. I put one in Makena's hand and immediately Karis wanted to have it. I took another one out and gave it to Makena and Karis wanted that one too. I explained how she had to share and they needed to take turns. She wasn't getting it. She wanted all the toys. Soon, Makena had nothing to play with.

I asked Karis, "What can Makena play with?" Karis then went to the little wastebasket with dirty diapers and tried to lift it up. I asked her, "Is that for Makena to play with?" She nodded yes.

I think we'll need a few more days to learn what it means to share...