snuggles

I love this picture of Dana and Davis. It is so sweet. He loves his Aunt and we all miss them... but glad they get to visit :)

James is 2!!!

Time is weird. I feel like James has been with us forever, yet to think 2 years have gone by is crazy! When I look at Davis it seems like such a long time ago that James was this small. And then it makes me sad to think how fleeting these years really are. 2 is a hard stage. I am just going to state that fact. We have meltdowns galore and there is quite a power struggle going on at times. Yet 2 can be fun! This kid is such a crack up and it's funny because he thinks so too. He will just laugh and laugh at himself. He finds himself quite entertaining. Which is a good thing! He can amuse himself well. He is aware though of when I am trying to get things done. If I try to work while he is awake he will come over and try to get me to step away from the computer. I am sorry to say the movie Cars has become a friend to both of us. When Davis was born, I would pop in the movie (since it is the only kids movie we have besides The Last Unicorn and he is a little young to fully appreciate that one) while I was nursing to distract James from the fact that the baby was getting so much attention. It seemed to work because he does not seem very jealous of Davis and now that nursing sessions are much shorter (thank goodness they get more efficient with time) James can entertain himself with toys instead.  But now Cars is also used when I have a lot of work I need to get done. I work from home and the way things work is it's feast or famine. Some days I have no work at all and then other days I have 5 hours of work to fit into the day. Some days he just asks to watch Cars, but I try to reserve the TV for times it is really needed and not just because. Anyway... as a result he loves Mack and Lighting McQueen. If he see's them anywhere we go, he gets all excited. I was at Target and they had soup that was Cars themed. We HAD to buy it and I must say he ate all his dinner that night. Eating can be a battle at this age and I am grateful when he can eat a good meal with little resistance. He likes using a fork and spoon and although it is messy, I try to let him do it as much as possible. 

James is using more words, which is a relief. He is still a little delayed in his speech so we have a friend who is going to trade me speech for pilates. It works out well for all of us :) We had him evaluated to get free speech through the county and he missed it by 1%. I am not to worried about it and know it will come in time, but it is nice to have someone who is a professional who can work with him. I am hoping it will cut down on some melt downs when he can communicate better. A few words he just started saying these past 2 weeks are please, thank you, shoes, car, bra (yeah not sure how he picked up on that one). His favorite things to say are "no, mine, baby and boo-ya!" The first two are my least favorite!!!

What he is lacking in verbal skills he makes up for in physical activity. This kid likes to move. He is a busy boy and loves to run and climb. The picture above is of him just running around at the park by our house. He could do this all day. He has started to take more of an interest in coloring and played well with playdough the other day while I was making bread. He was kneading the "dough" like mommy.James loves giving kisses and can be so sweet. I love when he will just randomly run up to me and hug my legs. There are so many special moments at this age, I hope I can remember them through the harder ones. 

His stats at his 2 year check up:

26 lbs (he finally got out of the 10th percentile and moved into the 25th!)

36 inches (90th percentile)

James loves to swim. On this day I forgot his swim suit and he had to go in just a swim diaper. At least I remembered that! I love this picture. Wish you could see his face. He is filled with so much joy when he is in the pool.

We had a Cars birthday party for him on Fathers Day since most of the family was gathering anyway. I figure his 3rd birthday we will have a party with friends. As for know, we stick with the family parties.

 The Hexberg Men

James getting some help blowing out his candles from his dad and cousins

 Grandma Davis and Davis. Not the best picture of them but wanted to post it anyway.

 I have a feeling Hunter and Davis will be good buddies. They were wearing similar outfits so I wanted to get a picture. Hunter decided that Davis looked tasty and wanted to eat him!

 James got a lot of great gifts. He loves them all!

On his birthday he got a Mack and McQueen toy from us along with the movie Cars 2.

Our friends Ruby and Harvey had invited us to the Huntington Library in Pasadena for a members event there. It was a lot of fun! There was a lot of people and everyone brought picnics to enjoy out on the lawn while a band played. We walked (James ran) around the gardens and danced to the music. We even got to ride on a golf cart which was a highlight of the evening for James. That and having a big piece of cake! Can you tell this kid likes sugar? He gets that from his dad. 

Happy Birthday James! We love you so much.

Austin

For our 5th wedding anniversary we decided we wanted to take a weekend trip. Since we have been obsessed with Friday Night Lights, we have been longing to go to Texas. Since the show was filmed in Austin, we started looking into it. The more we looked into it, the more we knew we wanted to visit there. We were even considering a possible move!!! For some reason we kept having this feeling that we needed to check it out. It is rated one of the best places to raise a family! The thought of a move was exciting and sad at the same time. I have lived in CA all my life (except for a 9 month hiatus in Utah for one school year) and most of my family is still here along with Haws' parents. Leaving would be so so sad. But have you seen the kind of home you can afford in Texas? We could own a huge house with back yard for half of what we bought our townhouse for. The church is strong in Austin and there is a lot you can do for your kids there. We could have 4 kids no problem in Austin, but they would be away... far away... from Grandparents and cousins. We know some friends that have moved there and love it. Anyway, we loved Austin but we are NOT moving there. We both got our answer, we are not suppose to move. Not right now at least. The more I thought about it the more I realized how lucky we are to have our home (even though the back patio is not that great). We have 4 bedrooms and can easily stay here while having all the kids we plan to. We are blessed and I know I should be more grateful for all I have and not dwell on the size of my home or sports we are going to be able to afford to have our kids play. It will work out if we make it work out. I know Haws would like to live somewhere with more land and less crowds, but we could have that in south Orange County. I will stop ranting about this and get on to our trip.

Texans have Texas pride and these Texas stars are everywhere! People have them on their homes, their cars and just about anywhere you can display them. I think they are rather pretty :)

As we drove to our hotel, on of the first sites we saw was The Landing Strip! Is you are an SNL fan, you know this place. We were excited, but not enough to stop in. We had some addresses of the homes and sites from the show but didn't have a chance to go see them. 

Everyone said that a must eat BBQ place was Franklin's. I would have to agree. The line was 1.5 hours and so worth it! I got the brisket and turkey and both were delicious! People might make fun of me for getting the turkey, but even Haws said it was really good. The line went by fast as we made friends with the folks waiting in line with us. As we talked to people in Austin, you come to find out that most are not original Texans and are implants from places all over the country. That is probably one reason Austin is so much more Liberal compared to the rest of Texas. Funny example... as we waited in line, I picked up a local news paper (something more like the oc weekly) called the Onion. There was a story about a man who locked himself out of his house naked (who is ever out side of their house naked??? I think it was intentional) and could not get back in. Passerbys started to stop and a crowd gathered as he began speaking about how we are all naked in some ways (again... intentional). The picture on the front of the paper had someone strategically covering the mans "unit". I lost interest in the article and began reading an article about Anne Romney. As I turned to read the rest of her article I was shocked to see a full-frontal shot of the guy who had locked himself out of his house! He was posed as if he was not ashamed to show of his "goods". I was disgusted. Haws was wondering what I was saying "oh gross!" about and he too was shocked. Just a little peek into the Austin openness I guess.

 The weekend we were there was also a Biker Ralley Race in Austin. There were bikers everywhere downtown! We went to the famous sixth street and got a good look at all the bikes.

We took a day trip to San Antonio and hit up the Temple, the Alamo, Riverwalk and visited with a friend. I think Haws and I both agree the Temple was a highlight to the trip. It is in a beautiful neighborhood and sits up in the hills. The Temple itself is beautiful. Great way to spend our anniversary.

After the Temple we visited one of Haws' friends from college and did the alamo and riverwalk. The alamo is small, but it was neat to see. Riverwalk is awesome. I highly recommend visiting it id you are in San Antonio. That night was one of the Kings championship games, so of course Haws had to watch it. We tried finding a cook place to watch the game, but because the basketball playoffs were going on, along with some big boxing fight, our choices were limited and we ended up at a buffalo wings place with a corner TV. Not the best way to spend your anniversary and I let Haws know he owed me :) The worst part was the Kings lost. The best part was I ran to a target and ended up finding a skirt I have been looking for! So I won that night :)

Sunday we meet friends for church and went to Torchy's Tacos. Another yummy place to eat in Austin.

After all of our fun we were so excited to get home to these guys. It was nice to get away just the two of us, but we missed them. Luckily they were in good hands and were good for my parents. We are so lucky we have parents that are willing to watch our kids for a long weekend! I think James had so much fun that even though he was happy to see us, he didn't want to leave Nana and Bop. He still wakes up on occasion asking for them :)

3 months!

This sweet boy turned 3 months on June 15th. I am a little behind posting about it. We went to the doctor yesterday for his 16 week check up and here are his stats:

13lbs 7 oz

24.5 inches

25 percentile for head

Davis is at a really cute age. He giggles all the time, smiles, coos and is quite the "talker".

He is a great sleeper! Takes 4 solid naps a day and has been sleeping through the night since 2 months old.

He wakes up anywhere between 6am and 8am in the morning. He has not rolled from his stomach to back much since 12 weeks old... but he looks like he is getting ready to roll from back to stomach soon. I think the swaddle might be gone in the next month... so sad! I love the swaddling. Once they are out of it they just seem so much older/bigger.

He is getting so strong and can push himself up more during tummy time. He is also sitting up well in the bumbo chair. Davis has a little bit of reflux and has been spitting up more. It seems worse when he is sitting upright even though they say to hold him that way after feeding. Luckily the spitting up does not seem to bother him. He is like James... "A happy spitter". But he is no where as bad as James was and for that I am thankful.

Davis really has the sweetest disposition. He usually only cries when he is tired, so I try my best to give him the sleep he needs. Sometimes activities disrupt his schedule and he is usually ok with it as long as he is distracted. I always know he has reached his limit when he is in his car seat. He is not happy in his car seat when he is tired. The one thing about Davis is he is not an "on the go" sleeper. He prefers his bed. I mean this kid will stay awake while driving on the freeway even when it's nap time. What baby does that??? :) 

We love you Davis!

Aquarium

I have been really bad about blogging. It seems every time I have a chance to sit at the computer I am either working, checking email or on facebook for 5 min. instagram and facebook have become my photo sharing resources, but I need to keep this up for journal purposes! 

I took the boys to the Long Beach Aquarium with James' friends Jay and Presley. Babies came along for the rise. I was happy I got a free ticket from my Grandma who is a member... that place is not cheap!

The kids loved it. I think James loved not being in a stroller. I just brought the snap and go and he did really good staying by me and helping me push the baby.

 Jay and James checking out the cool fish

 These seals put on a good show for the kids

 Don't these guys look real? James loved them and kept giving them kisses and hugs. I have to say that the real penguin exhibit was somewhat disappointing. Rather small.

Davis' Baby Blessing

We blessed Davis on April 29th (yes I am behind). It was such a special day and it was great having family and friends there to share it with us. We missed the family that couldn't be there, but know they were there in spirit. Haws did a great job even though the mic was a little low. I am so grateful that I am married to a man who lives his life in such a way that he is able to receive inspiration as to what our children need to be blessed with. The blessing was unique to Davis and very special. Davis didn't make a peep and was awake for the blessing. Once we sat back down, Haws got him to sleep on his lap. 

Is this not the cutest sleeping baby? 

The family 

We had everyone over to our house for lunch/dinner after the blessing. It was so much fun to entertain everyone. I was actually surprised that the kids didn't destroy the house a little bit more.
We didn't have time to take pictures of Davis in his blessing outfit the day of the blessing, but I got him dressed up in it for a photo shoot later.

2 Months

2 months really?? People are always saying how fast time flies when it comes to your kids... and we are no exception! The past 2 months have just flown by and soon I will have a 2 year old and a 3 month old. I guess the past 2 YEARS have flown by.

But on to Davis. This little guy is still the sweetest thing. He has grown a ton and has now past how much James weighed at this age! Considering he was a pound and a half lighter at birth than James, I consider that pretty impressive. He is a good eater but already gets distracted when too much is going on around him. He also messes around and plays when he should be eating, but he seems to be getting enough :)

Here are his 2 month appointment stats:

11lbs 4oz (50%)

22 3/4 inches (50%)

His head is in the 25%

Davis gave me the best Mother's Day gift possible... a full nights sleep! It was the first night he slept through the night and woke up around 615am. I woke up trying to remember if he had woken up during the night, but my breasts let me know he had not. What a champ. He hasn't slept that late since, but wakes somewhere between 430 and 530 most nights.

Davis is a mover. As you can see in some of these pictures it is hard to capture him while he is not moving around. He has rolled from his stomach to his back about 5 times now but it's not consistent. He is a smiley guy and loves to coo. I love having little conversations with him.

He got his first round of shots this last visit to the doctor. He did pretty good but was definitely more fussy that day. Luckily it didn't last past the first day. 

Davis likes having a schedule. He takes at least one nap while we are on the go, usually for our morning walk, but he prefers to sleep in his crib. If I get him down before he gets too tired he will just fall right asleep on his own. If I wait to long he fights it more. The evenings are the hardest time to get him down for a nap if I waited too long. His wake time is about 45min to an hour. Seems so short, but that is what it is. I look forward to when he stretches that out a bit so we can do more.

Love this little guy to pieces.

 Knocked right out after his shots.

Hmmmmmm

 Hanging out while James does his swim lesson.