Copenhagen - May 2016

We've tried to make the most of our proximity to the rest of Europe by traveling when ever possible. So with May 17th being a holiday here in Norway (more about that HERE) we decided to take a quick one hour flight to Copenhagen, Denmark. We wanted somewhere easy to get to and fun for kids since this would be our first trip with 2 kids in tow. And it's safe to say that Copenhagen did not disappoint!

Although the night before didn't go so smoothly (think midnight bath for poor Xander and 2 loads of laundry for his tired mother) everyone seemed to wake up feeling good and ready to travel.

Our flight was over-booked and we ended up sitting on opposite ends of the plane but it was totally fine because both kids were very well behaved! Although this was Xander's 28th flight (whoa!!) it was the first where he was really excited to be on a plane. He spent all morning talking about how he was going to go "up up UP UP UP!" in the plane.

We arrived at our flat near the heart of Copenhagen, dropped off our bags and set out to explore the neighborhood. There was a middle eastern festival with lots of food and music so we wandered around for a bit. Xander enjoyed watching the kids play soccer although he wanted to play too. He kept saying "Xander ball?"

Dinner that night was street tacos and nachos at Blue Tortilla grill just a block from our flat. The restaurant is run by a woman from Spain and they're famous for their homemade blue corn tortillas. We were pleasantly surprised to find such delicious tacos in Denmark!

The next day was Sunday and a lot placed were closed. Xander spent the morning playing in the playground in the rain across the street from our flat. Then we warmed up at lunch eating sliders the imaginatively named "Sliders". Luckily the burgers were more innovative than the restaurant's name and quite delicious!

Xander enjoyed looking out the window of the restaurant over a busy intersection. Lots of cars, bikes, and buses to watch and keep a busy toddler entertained.

After nap time we decided to hang around the flat and let Xander enjoy playing with all the toys! The owner has 2 small boys so it was packed with cars, balls, and even a train set!

They even had a high chair for Xander...which he only fell out of once! Whoops! 

The next morning we hopped on the metro and headed for the zoo.

Lions!

Things started to get a little bit more difficult at this point. And by "things" I mean the toddler. He was tired of sitting in his stroller which was basically the only option since we were using public transit the entire trip. So he ended up having quite a few public meltdowns. Fortunately he still wasn't short on smiles for the camera so maybe when I look back on this trip I can forget about that part!

Digger at an empty exhibit at the zoo...and probably Xander's favorite lol

Danish churros? Why not!

Our lunch at the zoo was surprisingly good (seeing a trend here?) Not pictured was the alcohol we washed it down with to make the toddler a tiny bit more bearable.

The next day we hit up the aquarium. Xander liked the fish but seemed to be most impressed with all the water (" a lot wawa") lol.

And after nap we went to Tivoli park. Quite possibly my favorite stop on the whole trip!

Xander was really too small for the rides but just walking around the park was fun. There was tons of cool architecture and green spaces for him to run around in, throw rocks, and chase the birds.

More wine for the parents...or as I like to call it, "red coffee" so I don't have to share it with the toddler.

2/3rds of my favorite boys...just chillin'

And more delicious food!

Candy floss (aka cotton candy) bigger than my head! Xander and I split it :)

And the subsequent sugar rush faces!

The next morning we had to pack up and catch the train for our flight back to Norway. Not before feeding the swans, ducks, pigeons, and sea gulls at the near by lake of course.

Farewell Copenhagen! Such a fun city! And in case you were wondering...we did in fact bring Benjamin :) Here's the only picture I took of him the entire time! Whoops!

Benjamin - 2 Months

Benjamin was 2 months old on May 6th. It's really amazing how fast babies grow at this stage. Last month he was just a cute little lump that didn't interact much. Now he's smiling and cooing and quite the little chunk!

If Benjamin is on Xander's level you can bet they'll be hanging out together. Usually Xander is good and he knows to be gentle with Benjamin. However, immediately after this picture was taken Xander gently put his foot on Benjamin's head, looked at me with a sneaky grin, and said "Gentle?" Ugh!

I'm not sure if B is going to be the water baby that his brother was. He seems to have a love/hate relationship with the bath right now. Sometimes he's cooing and kicking, other times he LOOSES HIS EVER LOVING MIND!

He does enjoy the warm cuddles after the bath though! I don't mind too much either!

So when we're at home B wants to be held non-stop and sleeps for 15-30 mins at a time MAX. But if we're out he sleeps the entire time! He loves his car seat and stays warm and snuggly in his down bag. We end up getting out of the house a lot because he's so much easier than when he's at home.

And this is how we survive days around this house. He HAS to be worn almost the entire day. I'm just thankful to be able to get some things done!

SMILES! We have smiles people! And that makes everything SO much easier. This kid loves to smile! And he's got some adorable dimples too! And thank you Martha for the gorgeous blanket! We all fight over it! :)

We went out for the first time as a family of 4 for my birthday. All my boys looked incredibly handsome and most of them behaved :)

 At 2 months Benjamin is tipping the scales at 12 lbs, which was Xander's weight when he was 4 months! I LOVE seeing his little chunk and knowing I don't have to worry about his weight like I did with Xander. He rapidly grew out of his newborn and 3 month clothes and I've already had to dig out 6 and 9 month clothes!

Can I be completely honest about something? While it was "love at first sight" for both my boys it took a few weeks to fall in love with them. Its like, there's this little thing that has all of a sudden joined your family and you have to get to know them, just like in any relationship. Well...I am now smitten with my little B! He's a terrible sleeper and an ton of work but I'm so in love and glad he's a part of our little party of 4!

Click HERE to read Alexander's 2 month post

Alexander - 21 months

I am always amazed when I do these quarterly posts how much has happened and how much Alexander has changed in such a short time!

Xander's half birthday was Dec, 21st while Nana and Papa were here in Norway. We had a wonderful time with them and after they left we all had a bit of the winter blues. Thankfully we had some amazing snowy days in January to brighten things up a bit!

February rolled in, the snow melted, and Xander was sick for almost 2.5 weeks straight! First it was the stomach bug, then it was an upper respiratory infection. He missed a ton of school and we spent a lot of time resting on the couch watching "vroom vroom" videos on YouTube. Unfortunately, gone are the days when he will cuddle when he's sick . Now he just gets REALLY crabby! It's no fun for anyone in his near vicinity! I call it Toddler Man Flu!

It was still quite dark in February so instead of playing outside in the evenings we spent a lot of family time in the kitchen. Arthur and I perfected our home made flour tortilla recipe under Xander's watchful eye. He did a great job helping roll out the dough.

Oh dear, allow me to explain this next (future blackmail) picture. So in February, Norwegians celebrate Carnival. Not exactly sure why as there isn't exactly a huge Brazilian population here. Anyway, the kids all dress up and participate in festivities at school. So Xander wasn't digging his original costume so the barnehage put him in a spare costume they drug up from who knows where. And OMG!!! Could it be any more inappropriate!? I laughed so hard when they showed us the pictures. Apparently he is dressed as Lumpy the Elephant. But all I can see is that TERRIBLE trunk! Y'all will see this picture again in 16 years during his graduation slide show! Bahahaha!!!

As March approached, we started to get the last bit of baby preparations underway. Xander enjoyed testing out some of the new baby gear. He knows how to turn the new swing off and on...not exactly a good thing!

With my due date quickly approaching I had difficulty lifting Xander so Arthur took him to school in the mornings. Xander loves getting ready with his Dada in the mornings. They brush their teeth together, do their hair, and I even over heard Xander "trimming his beard" one morning! Haha!

It's amazing how much this kid has learned in the last few months! He likes to count although his favorite number is "TWO!" He can identify and name all his colors and many shapes. He will spend 15 minutes just putting all the blocks into the shape sorter box. I'm amazed by his ability to concentrate! He likes to "read" books to us by imitating our intonation. His favorite book to read is "That's Not My Bunny!" He has just started to use some two word phrases ("dada go", "bye bye mama".) I've said it before but I LOVE watching his language grow! It absolutely fascinates me :)

Along with his speech, Xander's style of play has also evolved a lot in the last 3 months. We bought him a ton of legos for Christmas and he likes building them into the tallest towers ever and then knocking them down (of course.) But he's also started doing imaginative play like building cars and driving them around making various engine noises. He picked up a toy block the other day, brought it to his ear and said "Hello!" pretending to talk on the phone.

We made a very conscious effort while I was pregnant to give Xander as much quality attention as possible knowing that the days of him being an only child were quickly coming to an end. The morning before I went into labor we decided to bring Xander down into our bed for some books and cuddles. Yeah right! Really it was WWF wrestling toddler style. Don't let the serene look on Arthur's face fool you...there's a good chance he had just been head-butted right before this picture was taken.

A major milestone these last few months...Xander's first selfie!

The other major milestone...Xander became a big brother! We took a video of Xander's first introduction to Benjamin. At first it seemed like Xander was totally uninterested in the the little baby bundle on the bed. In fact, I think he thought it was a toy. Then Benjamin made a little baby noise in his sleep and Xander's eyes got SO BIG! I think that was the moment he realized it was real...and maybe all this talk about a baby started to make a little more sense to him. From day 1, and every day since, he LOVES holding Benjamin. Of course, he also likes popping the pacifier out of his mouth once he's sleeping and trying to touch his eyeballs when he's awake...ugh! Sorry B!

Man Xander, you are just the coolest kid! You're playful and loud and ornery and loveable and creative and your giggles are just infectious! We love you so very much and are so proud of the little boy and big brother that you are growing into.

Next stop...2 years! Pray for this mommy. There will be tears!

Benjamin - One Month

Baby Benjamin is one month old today! We are slowly adjusting to life with 2 under 2 (!!!!) Looking back on this month I can't believe how busy we've been!

Benjamin met his older brother Alexander when he was less than one day old. Alexander was a little underwhelmed and Benjamin slept through the entire encounter so it's safe to say it wasn't exactly a monumental experience for either of them. That being said, Arthur and I sure had fun taking pictures of our two perfect boys and seeing them together for the first time!

For his first 2-3 weeks Benjamin would only sleep on his tummy or side in our bed. As you can imagine that made it impossible for us to sleep. He would sleep in spurts on Arthur's chest and when Arthur was too exhausted he would sleep next to me while he nursed. Needless to say I'm glad that he's already grown out of that! Now he sleeps swaddled in his own bassinet next to our bed.

Any time Benjamin is behind held Xander also wants to crawl up in our laps and cuddle him too. I don't think it's a jealously thing...yet. He's just very curious about this new little baby and loves being close to him.

One of the things I spent a lot of time worrying about while I was pregnant was if I would have similar issues with low supply that I had with Xander. I did lots of skin-to-skin with him in the first few days, and nurse on demand, even if that means he's nursing every 30 mins (which he does some days.) I am so very proud to say he seems to be gaining weight like a champ! He weighed as much at 3 weeks as Xander weighed at 2 months! Praying that this upward trend continues. Just look at that little belly :)

Benjamin had many very difficult, fussy days this month where he has needed near constant cuddles. I think a lot of that had to do with some tummy troubles. Thankfully, Arthur had most of  March off to help! I made some diet changes and he seems to be doing much better and is more content now. 

Benjamin attended his first social gathering this month. We had dinner with some of our American friends here. Our brood of kiddos has grown from 3 to 7 in just the last few months! We've all been productive here in Norway! And there's my youngest...already needing to be front and center!

Benjamin took his first plane ride this month. We traveled to Oslo to apply for his American passport. He still has a long way to go to catch up with how many flights Alexander has been on, but he sure set the bar high! He was so good and slept almost the entire trip. So much easier than a busy toddler!

Baby Benjamin, thank you for joining our little family. You are so loved and we are so thankful to have you here! We can't wait to see what the future holds for you.

See Alexander's one month post HERE