A new year

It's almost the end of January! Time seriously FLIES. It actually kind of scares me sometimes. I feel like all the cliche things people tell you regarding having children didn't seem that true when we just had Cole but now that we have Quinn it does go by so fast and I really can't keep my house clean for more than 5 seconds and we're always exhausted.

Quinn pretty much makes me laugh every day with his huge smile that quickly turns to anger (and then back to ecstatic joy in a matter of seconds). He loves loves loves to eat and loves loves loves his brother. He loves a lot of other things, but these are his favorites. If we don't shovel the food into his mouth fast enough, he is very vocal about it. I had to laugh when I went to get his immunizations the other day. The nurse told me that I shouldn't be feeding him 3 times a day and she casually suggested just breakfast and dinner. Q would not be okay with that. He also would not be okay with the suggested meals list the nurse gave me - apparently 2-3 tablespoons of baby food is supposed to fill Q up. If you have ever seen Q eat, you know this would not go over well with him.

Quinn's milestones have been popping out two teeth over Christmas, sitting pretty much on his own, babbling (started with 'dada' and just a week ago added 'nana'), and still trying desperately to crawl. He gets pretty frustrated (and vocal) because he can only go backwards at this point. It's hard for him to move with so much junk in the trunk - he's a big boy. He currently weighs 21.5 lbs. Q is quickly catching up to his brother, he's wearing lots of clothes that Cole wore when he was over a year.

Cole is still our sweet, sensitive, verbal little man. He has been learning phrases such as "I'm using that Quinn" and "that's mine Quinn" (and also learning to say them nicely). He loves singing and his favorite song right now is ABCs. He sang it the other day for one of our friends and then informed him that "that's the alphabet song". Cole loves drawing, painting and coloring with all the new art supplies he got for Christmas from Nana & Bunka. He is also loving jigsaw puzzles. My mom was out visiting last week and they spent lots of time on the floor doing the same puzzle over and over. 

A recent development in Cole's vocabulary is his use of questions. Last night he was picking up guacamole off his plate at dinner and saying "Anyone want some guacamole?" 

A typical conversation at between us goes something like this:

C - Are we going to Sarah's house?

A- Not today Cole.

C - I want to go to Vancouver.

A - Not today Cole.

C - Well, where we going today???

Cole loves going into Vancouver, especially to his cousins house. It's cool to see the cousins starting to play together and become little buddies (I'm using that term loosely). Cole also loves running errands with Daddy, which usually involves a Starbucks run for some "coffee water" and "banna bread". He loves going to the bank with Daddy and considers this an exciting outing. 

Lately, Cole has been showing more and more interest in Quinn and is very sweet with him (at times). He shares his food (which just makes him even more awesome in Q's eyes), brings him toys and last week I snuck into the room to find him explaining to Quinn where his scooter was. Sometimes we talk about how we wish we could freeze this time in our lives when our kids are young and will go anywhere with us, when a pacifier or a snack keeps them quiet and happy and when they think we're the most important people in the world. I'm tired, I have absolutely zero personal space, I'm usually covered in drool and spit up, but I love this stage (or maybe I just love the control I have... ha ha). That said, if you talk to me tomorrow I might be going insane and want to ship my kids to their grandparents house...

Celebrating Ducky's birthday at Soren & Marlow's house.

A day at home - Q loves his jolly jumper

Snow day!

Sharing a snack

Brothers

The boys have been doing so many new things that I really wanted to get it down on paper (or online at least) so it will be documented.

This picture pretty much sums up their relationship - Cole's a bit wary of Quinn and his crazy squawky flailing and Quinn just wants whatever Cole's eating.

Quinn will be 6 months old this week. Hard to believe that this little man has been around for half a year. We had a pretty bumpy start with Q but we feel so lucky to have our two boys. Quinn loves his brother and laughs at all the funny things he does (putting things on his head, dancing, laying on top of Quinn, making funny noises, jumping on the bed). Quinn is super smiley and happy (and so loud!) but will also let us know when he isn't impressed. We weighed him at his cousins' house the other day and he's 20.5 lbs. He sits by himself for a couple of seconds (long enough for a picture) and is trying desperately to crawl. He can squirm his way around a bit. He also LOVES food and I think he'd be happy to bypass the pureed foods and just go straight to meats. Quinn's so different than Cole in so many ways - he wears clothes that Cole wore when he was 1, he's much louder, he moves and wiggles more... He also isn't the dream sleeper Cole was but when I wake up to his cooing in the morning, it's hard to be annoyed about that. Ok, it's a bit annoying when he wakes up every hour.

Cole is definitely a two year old right now. His favorite words are "no" and "I do it by myself" or "I do it a big boy". It's great to see him become more independent and want try new things. Right now he's really into "writing" and drawing. He can actually write all the letters in his name (the reason we picked "cole" is it has the easiest letters in the alphabet). He still loves cooking and baking and has been busy making Christmas ornaments and cookies. We love all the little things Cole says every day - "I had a good sleep" or "I had a really, really long sleep" when he wakes up in the morning, "Quinn need a bottle" when Quinn's crying, "Come on! What the heck?!" when he misses the ball while playing hockey... he definitely entertains us. He also loves yelling up the stairs to me if I run up for something "Mom! I'm just downstairs playing." Cole doesn't always reciprocate Quinn's excitement and love for him, but does show him affection sometimes, usually by rolling on top of him, which Q absolutley loves for some reason. He does get frustrated though and usually wants whatever Quinn is playing with or doesn't like when the attention isn't on him. We're excited to see the boys grow up and start playing together.

Cole at 6.5 months and Quinn at just under 6 months

Rollin'

This week Quinn: had his 4 month immunizations, kept Mommy & Daddy up lots at night, ate rice cereal and got really gassy, became more coordinated when reaching for toys or anything else he could get his hands on, started imitating Mommy making gurgling noises, tried to hold his bottle and put his pacifier in his mouth, was 18 weeks old

*After a few weeks of some pretty desperate (and angry) attempts, Quinn rolled from back to tummy for the first time today!

This week Cole: asked lots of questions, such as "where does cilantro come from?", played with his soccer ball and football all week long, cried at his swimming lessons, told Mommy he wanted to "go visit the twins on Water Street" and "maybe move to Uncle John's house", had dance parties with lots of spinning (kind of like a figure skater - yikes!), started understanding why Quinn cries (he'll say "Quinn's hungry", "Quinn needs a bottle" or "Quinn's tired" and will give him a toy or hold his hand)

*Cole hugged all the goats at the Apple Barn

We had a great week with Grandma in town helping out the cousins and Auntie Amber visiting from England. We had Grandma stay at our house for a couple of nights and went to visit her at Auntie Sarah's in Gastown. Cole is obsessed with going to John & Sarah's and loves the "W up in the sky" at their place. He also asked if he could take a bath at Auntie Sarah's... We also went to the Apple Barn in Abbotsford with Auntie Amber where we pet bunnies and goats, picked out a pumpkin, went on a hay ride and through a corn maze. It was lots of fun and the weather was beautiful. Oh and we also fit in a quick trip to Bowen for dinner yesterday. Busy week!

Time flies!

My apologies to anyone who regularly checks this blog (Mom...), I know it's been 4 whole months since I posted. Let's just say that my computer time has decreased significantly since having Quinn. My goal now is to try updating once a week with little snippets of what the boys are up to. It will be my version of a baby book. Just don't hold me to it!

QUINN

Mr. Q is 4 months old. There are so many updates and firsts already - first flight (to Edmonton for Auntie Ashleigh & Uncle Jeff's wedding), first ferry trip (to Nana & Bunka's), rolling from front to back, wearing suspenders, first taste of baby cereal (last night!), first round of immunizations...

Quinn had a bit of a rough start to life, with some major thrush and a touch of colic. The first two months were HARD and we weren't sure if we could handle 2 kids. But around 2 months, Quinn became a happy, smiley little man. He loves his bouncy chair, exersaucer, jolly jumper, going for stroller walks, sleeping in the baby carrier, and chewing on his hands. He is currently working on getting his entire fist into his mouth. I don't know if it's just because he's the 2nd child, but Quinn is pretty content to be dragged around to whatever activities the rest of us are doing. 

Sleep has not been the greatest with Quinn, he still wakes up a few times a night, which is totally different from Cole. He is also a lot louder than Cole was as a babe and much pudgier! He already fits clothes that fit Cole when he was over 6 months old. He loves watching his older brother play but is not that content to be immobile. He has already tried pushing up when on his tummy and already kind of tucks his legs up a bit. He also loves to stand. Cole didn't crawl til he was over a year, so it's weird to see Quinn already trying to move a lot.

COLE

Cole is 2!!! I can't believe it. He is definitely a toddler in a lot of ways - very particular, independent (he often says "I do it a big boy"), moody at times, inquisitive and talkative. He totally blows us away with his understanding of concepts and his verbal skills. Lately he's been asking me "what Mommy talking for?" when I'm having a conversation with someone, wanting to know what I'm talking about. He also asks "what that called?" over and over each day. We love spending time with him and seeing his little personality develop. 

Cole is somewhat reserved when in big groups, but when he's at home or with people he's very comfortable with, he is hard to keep quiet. He talks non-stop. He is starting to really love his little brother, although at first he was pretty indifferent about the whole baby thing. Sometimes he gets upset when Quinn cries, but lately he's been holding his hand or offering Quinn his bunny when he's upset. which is a big deal, because Cole is very attached to Bunny. He also loves hugging and kissing Quinn and when we're driving somewhere he'll say "Quinn, we're here!" when we arrive at our destination. 

Things Cole likes right now - "cozy pants" (fleece sweatpants), hoodies, zippers & buttons, blocks, cars & trucks, cooking in his kitchen (mostly making eggs, pancakes, coffee and cupcakes), helping in the big kitchen (washing dishes, making muffins or cookies, sweeping the floor), trying to take things apart with a screwdriver, going on the swing at the playground, food (favorites are: spaghetti, carrots and hummus, avocados, grilled cheese sandwhiches, tacos, chips and salsa, cookies, muffins, banana with peanut butter), coloring, "writing" words with a pen, "reading" magazines, playing with Quinn's baby toys, going to "Bancouver"...

The last few months have been exciting for Cole - he was the ring bearer in Auntie Ashleigh and Uncle Jeff's wedding and wore a bow tie, we went on a little summer holiday, he started swimming lessons with Daddy, he started using a knife when he eats, he started drinking "fancy water" (San Pelligrino), he had multiple 2nd birthday parties, we visited Victoria, Bowen Island & Lac La Biche and we had visits from lots of family members.

Cole knows all his colors and shapes and is starting to recognize letters (he knows f, m, h, k, q and a few more). He can sing the alphabet as well as "Happy Birthday" and a few Raffi songs (after listening to the Raffi album a million times). He knows the names of almost all his relatives (and there are a lot of them!). He recognizes his name and can spell it out C-O-L-E. Cole talks in full sentences and can definitely let you know what he wants. For example, when we were at my parents house in Septemeber he said to me "I want to go to bed and cry". He carries around papers with "recipes" and says "I need brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, baking soda" and loves to be in the kitchen all the time. He knows most fruits and vegetables (yesterday he said, "I want to eat squash, butternut squash") and loves going to the produce store with me to pick them out. He knows up/down, around the corner, under/over, hot/cold, big/tiny. It's amazing how much toddlers learn every day. Although this is the stage of tantrums and stubborness, it's also such a fun and entertaining age. Cole's so entertaining that we cancelled our cable!

I know this post is long, but it's more so I'll remember everything that has been going on in the last few months. The time goes by so quickly and I know I'll forget all the little things that happen every day. Gord and I both feel so lucky to have our two boys and we really feel like a family now with the addition of squishy little Quinn. I hope to post again next week so that my posts can be a bit shorter and not sounding like a brag book for my kids!

He's here!

Quinn Jameson Wo Wah Cochran is finally here! After a week of wondering if I was going to be pregnant forever, we finally got to meet our little man. We're all doing well and settling in at home. Cole's been great so far and is somewhat indifferent to Quinn. He's got lots of loving family around him giving him tons of attention, so I don't think he really cares too much.

As far as labor goes, mine went pretty quickly and smoothly. On Sunday night I started having mild contractions that stayed pretty much the same until Monday evening. They started getting stronger as we watched the Canucks get worked by the Bruins but I decided to go to bed and try to sleep through them if I could. I successfuly slept through contractions until I woke up at 12:30 when my water broke in bed (yuck). We got to the hospital around 1:30 am and after my first dose of antibiotics were almost sent home to rest. Luckily we weren't, because 4.5 hours later, Quinn was born. 

Here's a pic of our newest addition, more to come!