By the Numbers

Lydia and Jack each had a check-up at the Dr. last week. Lydia had her 2 year check-up and Jack had his 4 month check-up. Both had to get shots and neither was happy about it. But they are both very healthy (which we are very grateful for) and they are both getting bigger.

Lydia:


Lydia weighed in at a measly 24 lbs and 12 ounces (25%) and was 35 inches tall (80%)
Honestly - I don't really think Lydia is in the 80% for her height. She is definitely not taller than Lauren was at this age and Lauren was always at about the 75% for her height. The way they measure the height at my pediatricians office here is funny. They just have the child lay down on the table and they take a pen and mark the top of the head and then mark the heel then get a measuring tape and see what it comes out too. I don't think they do a good job of lining the child up right or making sure they are getting the top of the head and not the hair. They had to redo Jack twice last time because they realized they did it wrong when he was off the chart and they realized they were marking from his hair (which pokes straight out of his head) and not his actual scalp! Since Lydia is 2 now, they will start measuring her on a normal scale and use the scale to determine her height as well so we should get a more accurate reading at her 2 1/2 year check-up!

Jack:



Jack is a whopper! He weighed in at 18 lbs. and 2 ounces (90%) and he is exactly double his birth weight! He was 25 3/4 inches tall (70%). So he went down in both of his stats from his 2 months (he was in the 95% for weight and 75% for height then). He is definitely a chunky monkey but so dang happy and smiley (for the most part)! Everybody is always amazed though when I say he is only 4 months old . He definitely looks more like a 6 month old baby. I am guessing that in a year he will weigh at least as much as Lydia if not more!

Great Wolf Lodge

Dave and Lauren both had no school on Columbus Day or the day following so we took advantage of the break (and the great deal we were able to find) and surprised the kids with two days at the Great Wolf Lodge in the Pocono Mountains. It turned out to be such a fun little vacation for our family and the best part was that it only took us about 30 minutes to drive there! We checked in on Mon. after lunch and headed straight to the indoor water park where we swam until dinner time. The kids did better than I ever expected. Lauren LOVED doing the big rides with her Dad and I was able to stay in the more calm parts of the water park with Lydia and Jack. Lydia was the perfect size for all the little slides they have and she loved being able to walk all over the park. Jack was so good too and would just sit in the water with us and when he got tired, we put him in his car seat and covered him up and he would nap away.

The kids also loved the room and we brought microwave popcorn and drinks and we were able to relax for a little bit and hang out in the room and have fun.

Since we were there in October, the Lodge had a Halloween Hunt and the kids could dress up and they got to go to different parts of the Lodge and at each place were given candy or small toys. They loved that part as well.

After the Halloween Hunt we changed into our Pajamas and headed down to the main lobby of the Lodge and they have a big story time for all the kids down there. My kids loved it and had a lot of fun watching the animated story as well as listening to the story read to them by a worker.

The next morning, we got back in our suits and headed back to the water park for another day of swimming. We finally headed out about 1:30 that afternoon because the two little ones were ready for naps and we were all hungry (the food was really expensive so we figured we could make everyone happy with a Happy Meal and save lots of $$ in the process). We definitely got our fill of swimming though. We are hoping Dave and Lauren's schedules match up again next year and we can find another great deal.

This is what Jack looked like for most of our time at the water park.

The girls all dressed up and ready for the Halloween Hunt.

After story time they got to take their picture with the wolf cub (Lydia wasn't so sure standing right next to the wolf cub was a good idea).

The beautiful Pocono Mountains (if you are from the West, more like hills) - the leaves are just starting to get really beautiful!

Lauren really felt like big stuff when she tried to do the leap pads across the pool. I took her picture just as she was toppling off.

The girls loved playing in the wave pool. I love the zero entry for all the play areas - perfect for little ones.

My Little Peanut

I cannot believe that two years ago today, I was the Mom to just one little girl. I can barely remember when it was just me and Lauren all day, doing whatever we wanted because there was no more nap time and because she was such a good girl we could go anywhere. We would go to movies together, the Children's Museum (any time of the day), swimming at the pool or beach, or off playing at the park or with friends. But that all changed on Oct. 6th 2008, when little Lydia joined our family. Tomorrow this little peanut turns 2 and she is such a sweet little thing! Sure, things changed quite a bit after she came along but that was okay - we were SO HAPPY to finally have this little one join our family!

She has been the best little sister for Lauren. She absolutely adores having Lauren as her big sister and follows her around all day and loves to be doing what ever Lauren is doing.

She has also made the adjustment to being a big sister as well. She loves her little brother Jack and is so good to take care of him and is so gentle with him. If he is upset she is the first to run and get help. Once Jack is on the move I think Lydia will have a permanent little shadow herself!

Lydia at 1 week old

Lydia today - being my big helper and unloading all the silverware from the dishwasher.

We Love you Lydia!