A Family Frittatta

I tried this fritatta recipe after drooling over it for a couple of weeks. Lo and behold it turned out even better than I had imagined! We dug into it so fast that I wasn't able to snap a photo of the finished product until it had been generously sliced up and dished out onto our plates.  

Yum. Weekend brunch with the family is definitely a favourite and this recipe will certainly be part of our rotation.

Hoppity Hop

This Easter was pretty quiet. It was cold outside, we had no visitors and we declined all dinner invites because both boys were sick. Truthfully, we were all just hoping to catch up on some much needed sleep. Fortunately the Easter Bunny made a pit stop at our house and put a little hop into our step. Ben was pretty thrilled about his egg hunt and Max enjoyed playing with the big boys. It actually turned out quite lovely.

Happy Easter!

Six Months: Sounds and Solids

Half-A-Year-Old! This is equal parts impossible (how did you grow so fast?) and yet still questionable (haven't you been here forever?). I'm really glad I've been doing these posts so I can keep track of how things are constantly moving and changing; a great resource for looking back and remembering.

It's been a fairly steady stream of changes and developments and I can't complain because I'm so grateful for this normally happy healthy boy. He did wake up with a cold this morning but fortunately he doesn't complain too much despite all the ickiness involved. Max is rolling from back to front but still often gets stuck on his stomach. He's also pretty good at balancing in a sit position although I won't say he's sitting on his own quite yet. His coordination is always improving and he's very good at tracking things, grasping them and bringing them to his mouth. Speaking of his mouth, the drool continues but not teeth yet. I learned from Ben that this can be a really slow process so I'm not holding my breath despite all the 'signs' being there. The teeth can be shy and will come when they come. Max's voice, however, has been anything but timid. This guy is a shrill shrieker and likes to make his presence known! Some days my ears literally ring because his screams are so high pitched and loud. Usually he's just playing but sometimes he does it for attention too. Our boy doesn't always have to be centre of attention but he certainly loves to be right in the middle of whatever we're doing.

His six month wellness appointment is coming up soon but I'm confidant we've surpassed the 20lbs mark. Thanks for the constant upper body workout buddy! My arms and back have never been stronger. His hair is coming in a bit thicker and his eyelashes are growing again too. Perhaps all this growing explains why our sleep has regressed so much recently? Gah - he's up probably 6-7x per night and I'm pretty sure this is more frequent than his newborn days. He also fights his naps pretty hard which makes for a tired baby and a tired mom. Not ideal! Really hoping this is going to change by next month's post. Sleep! We miss you dearly!!!

The biggest milestone of this month has been the introduction of solid foods. Contrary to what we all assumed - Max is not a big eater! Mind you, he's only had like two days of 'trials' but so far he just grimaces and spits it all out! Totally not what we expected but likely to change over time. Go figure!

But with all these changes there are a few constants that I really treasure. Max still bobs his head forwards and back when he's nursing, something he's done since birth. He still likes to pat my chest or hold onto my shirt to stay extra close. He still is a mama's boy and likes to cuddle as much as possible. And he still has a wicked smile that makes my heart just melt. Love him so much!

Life wise things have been pretty status quo; the usual round of playdates and outings (which, unfortunately, still require us to wear snow gear). Winter will never end! A new cousin was born this month which means Max is no longer the littlest person on my side of the family. Amazing to be reminded how much has changed since those early days! Max also started going to child care once a week at our Recreation Centre while big brother Ben attends a one hour 'Counting Class' (often verbally mistaken as an 'Accounting Class' haha). No, I don't have my toddler in an accounting class just quite yet. We are desperate for more outdoor activities to fill up our days and hope to start our park rounds very soon!

A few pics of our sweet six month old.

Vegas with Babies (aka visual overload)

Even before Max was born I said to Danny that I needed to plan a vacation for our family. I needed something I could look forward to after what I assumed would be a long winter cooped up in the house with two little ones. Vegas fit the bill perfectly. Short flight. Plenty to do. Accessible for the grandparents who happily agreed to meet us there from their much sunnier climes (read: snowbirds). This trip turned out to be exactly what I needed and couldn't come soon enough!

Nothing like a change of scenery (and pace) to shake things up a bit.

Welcome to warm weather, Max, where you get to load up on sunscreen instead of layers upon layers of clothing to go outside. Palm trees, sunshine, baby giggles. Enough said.

Taking a few fun group shots while we waited for the Bellagio fountains. They didn't actually play as it was apparently too windy outside but Ben was thrilled to have Papa Ray's attention again…it had been a while since they last played together.

Exploring the butterfly gardens, also at the Bellagio, and taking in the sweet scents of the fresh flower gardens. How cool is that 3D painting? This living artwork puts my green thumb to shame... if you can even call weekly purchases of tulips worthy of a green thumb title. Yeah, not so much. But anyhow, the flowers here were stunning.

A much needed date night for Danny and I. First one since the baby was born if I recall. A delicious steak night at Mastro's Ocean Club followed by a walk down the illuminated strip.

Ben and the Grandparents riding the 'choo chop tram'. He still talks about this! My sweet boy loves planes, trains, and basically any form of transportation that will go-go-go!

Jean Phillipe - we meet again.

No shortage of things to see, eat and buy in Vegas. Our eyes were delighted, tummies were full and feet were sore.

Some fun family shots in our hotel lobby. If I could bottle the scent of Mandarin Oriental hotel and sell it I would be able to purchase one of their penthouse residences. Too bad that aroma is specially formulated exclusively for the hotel and not for sale (so I'm told). Guess we'll just have to keep coming back!

Brunch at MOzen bistro before heading home. It was tough to say goodbye to the grandparents and tough to say goodbye to the warm weather but what wonderful memories we could take home with us!

Five Months: Tasty Toes, Belly Rolls & Big Explosions

We are at the wonderful five month mark with our Maxim. I remember five months old being a really great age with Ben and I think we're in for a similar experience with Max. Routines are pretty stable, baby is happy and we're getting a bit more sleep. Yay for five months!

I had to look back at the four month post to see what sort of developments we'd actually achieved this month; it seems like there's been so much going on that something that happened six days prior is 'old hat' now. Max really likes lying on his back and playing with or nibbling on his toes. He also hoists his legs into the air a lot and then rolls to his side. Today marked the first time that he rolled completely over from back to front (and then proceeded to protest because he was stuck, haha). He still gurgles and drools and makes lots of funny squeaks and squeals. He's got a great belly laugh and enjoys when we tease him. One funny thing I noticed recently is that he will often make puffing noises when he wakes up. He'll fill up his cheeks with air, purse his lips, and then pufffffff! I think he finds it quite entertaining.

A couple weeks ago, Max had his wellness and immunization appointment and the 'little mister' weighed in at 19lbs1oz. Holy Moly! Way to go buddy! He's also 29in long which explains why we've once again moved on to the 9-12month sized pyjamas and are in size 4 diapers. Just to compare, Ben wears a size 5 diaper right now and he is two years old! Speaking of diapers (yup, I'm going there) Max has been exploding out of his diapers 2-3 times a day for almost two months now. I'm rather tired of changing his outfits multiple times a day and scrubbing out already ruined onesies. Serious power with that kid. We've tried everything short of full body saran wrap. Uuugh - can't wait until this particular phase has passed, haha!

We've been putting Max in the crib in the nursery a few times at night but he still usually sleeps in our room. Still very much a mama's boy and likes having me near by. He'll do a good five hour stretch and then wake up almost every hour afterwards until we officially get up for the day. The five hour stretch is nice and he's usually fairly easy to put down during the waking up phase, unless he's not, in which case I hand him over to Dad. Your turn!

This month we did our best to keep entertained during one of the longest winters in recent memory. We organized a few playdates with our friends to get out of the house and explore. Max likes the change of scenery but hates the car rides getting there. Max also took his first every plane ride when we went down to Las Vegas for a few nights to visit with my folks and break up the monotony of our day to day routine. I was so much less worried about traveling with a baby having done it before with Ben and not surprisingly it went pretty smoothly. The flight back was slightly more challenging as Max was way too distracted to remember how nurse (seriously?) but he didn't fuss too much and eventually fell asleep. Cannot complain. The next trip could be treacherous or wonderful. That's the joy of unpredictability!

As I alluded to before, we are so ready for winter to be over and spring to show its sunny face. I can't wait to get outside a lot more with the boys and enjoy playing around in the sand or grass. I guess that is also dependent on our yard being landscaped but that is scheduled to happen as soon as the snow melts so bring on spring!

Yummy Eats

Love it when the hubby cooks!

Four Months: Nom Nom Nom

"The Maxim, The Maxim, we all love the Maxim!"

Okay, so that little ditty is actually an adaptation of a Winnie the Pooh song called, "The Backson", that Ben is equal parts afraid of and obsessed with. He loves to belt it out at the top of his lungs, usually when we're in the car. So it was somewhat inevitable that we would turn the song on top of its head and make it our own. Hence, "The Maxim"!

But here we are at the four month mark and I feel like I've barely hit the publish button on the three month post. Max continues to grow, grow, grow and looks much older than he actually is. He's probably around 17-18lbs and 27in long (I'm estimating but we'll find out his actual measurements in a couple weeks). I've got yet another pile of clothes in the laundry room to be put into storage. Most of Max's outfits and pyjamas are in the 6-12month range and he's wearing a size 3 diaper (I write this for my own purposes, not that I expect anyone else to be fascinated by that fact!). Max has officially outgrown the baby bathtub (what?!?) and barely fits in his nighttime bassinet anymore either. He can't sit up on his own yet but he has no problem keeping his head up and bearing his weight on his pudgy feet when he 'stands'. He's also days away from rolling over. Changes ahead. Ah, scary!

Everything goes in the mouth these days too. I had a funny moment this evening where he kept grabbing my finger, putting it into his mouth, pulling it out to examine it, and putting in back into his mouth. This happened over and over again. Gotta explore buddy! He's also figured out how to blow bubbles and stick out his tongue. He's hit the hard core drooling phase so bibs are definitely our friend. No teeth yet apart from the tooth bud he's had since birth. Not rushing that phase if I can help it as Max is already a fairly aggressive eater if you know what I mean. Ouch!

We had a few great weeks intermixed with the odd rough day; much to be expected with little ones. This past month we did a weekend trip in Canmore with some family friends who have daughters the exact same ages as our sons. It was fun to take them all sledding, go out for a few meals and watch them play together in our hotel rooms (Max's first night away from home). Not too long after that trip, we celebrated Chinese New Year and welcomed the Year of the Horse. We made a couple trips to the zoo and did our usual play date rounds. Another fun event has been watching the Winter Olympics. Although Max really doesn't watch much of anything we sure enjoy cheering for Team Canada and dressing up in red and white gear to support our athletes. Oh, and how could I forget Valentine's Day with our little family? I've got three handsome men in my life, so lucky. Maybe next year you can indulge in chocolates my sweet boy.

The brothers are starting to interact with each other a little bit. Ben is very loving and affectionate towards Max (okay, when prodded) but might bring a toy dinosaur a little too close the next moment. I don't worry too much though as Max can totally hold his own. They laugh with each other, take turns in the bouncer and have gibberish conversations back and forth from time to time. Max also tracks Ben as Ben runs in circles around the house. At each lap, Ben stops and touches his little brother's foot and says, "Hi Max" before continuing on his merry way. It's pretty cute, I must admit. Pretty soon they'll both be burning circles in the floor.

My little mama's boy is still a wonderful cuddler who shares big grins and giggles most of the day. I enjoy snuggling with him for a few minutes on the couch during the afternoons whenever I can. I hope he doesn't grow out of this stage too quickly. Still trying to savour as much as I can while knowing what sort of great adventures lay ahead.

Love you lots buddy!