Baby S

And he's here!  Well, he has been for four months!  Sullivan James Collins.  8lbs 1 oz of pure JOY!  We had a great experience the second time.  He looks NOTHING like his brother and came out with a full head of black hair!  



He's a chubby, chubby doll!  His current stats from his 4 month appointment are 25inches and 17lbs!!  What a husker!  

Sullivan LOVES to roll over (already, yikes!) and he just sat in his highchair for the first time this week.  See above.

Sullivan is so absolutely chill, he loves his brother, and he laughs the most at his daddy.  When we were in the hospital, he and I just hung out and watched HGTV all day.  He hardly ever cries (but when he does its in the middle of the night!  Ha!).  He is currently sleeping 7:30 - 4:00 and then has a snack but goes back to sleep until 7:00.  He is the easiest baby to fall in love with and I am constantly just wanting to EAT up those rolls.  See below.

Sullivan makes me want to have 10 more babies, but I'm still working on finding a daddy for those extras.  Brooks cracks us up by calling Sullivan his full name "Sullban James Collins" when prompted.  Brooks loves his brother and has not really acted out very much.  Brooks has started referring to himself as "Brooksie" since joining Ellison's class at MDO.  Even his teachers call him that now!  I love every day I get to spend with these two.  Blessed and so happy!  

Upcoming Season...2 weeks to go!

The date is set, our bags are packed, the crib is out and the breast pump is sterilized.  While I wanted to write a post about how excited I am about meeting our new bambino... I can't help but feel extremely sentimental about my little busta', Brooks.

I am fully aware that I have an influx of hormones running through my blood, but it seems like these last couple of weeks I've spent hours just staring in awe of my little baby boy.  I've spent more time than usual cuddling, snuggling and just telling him I love him.  I know everyone loves their kids, but he honestly is the cutest, sweetest toddler I could possibly imagine.

Brooks loves to look right at you and tell you he loves you.  He gives big hugs and kisses, and pats your back when he's going to sleep at night.  Brooks tells me "I have to be real easy" when hugging Mommy and then jumps with all his might when hugging Dadda.  He has the sweetest disposition, and he still says "Mommy hold you" about a dozen times a day.  Thank the Lord he still wants me to pick him up and puts his head on my shoulder when he's tired or sad.  We moved him to a toddler bed a couple months ago and have been laying down with him at night until he falls asleep.  I have heard this is a bad habit, but truthfully it is the best part of my day.  He says "Mommy, you wanna lay down wit me," or "Dadda, lay down wit me," and then pulls your hand over his little body to snuggle.    I get so excited when he wakes up in the morning.  He crawls out of his bed and shuts his door, then walks into our room with his blankie and says "I wake up!"

Brooks loves cracking eggs with me in the morning, loves making coffee and toast, and starting the blender for "pooddies" (smoothies).  He loves going to "school" (MDO) and has the best class of mostly little boys.  He loves Mrs. Bobbie, JJ and Nate.  He says "Have a good day at school" when I drop him off and runs with all his might to me when I pick him up.

Brooks loves playing cars, trains, and "making coffee" on his workbench.  He knows the names of several Thomas characters and especially loves the Crane from "Down by the Docks."  He wants to read the longest books he can every night, to postpone the inevitable night night time.  He also is currently obsessed with Monster Trucks.

Brooks loves his Dadda, and runs to the door when he comes home at night.  He loves his Mawnee, Grandpa, Grandma, Pappy and GiGi.  He loves YaYa and Bubba, and would spend every waking moment with his cousin Ellison, if they weren't always on the verge of World War III. 

We are blessed beyond measure.  And while my heart leaps when I think about meeting our new little man, I tear up or sob uncontrollably when I think about how much I care about the little fella curled up in his bed right now.  My heart could burst.  

I thank God every day that I get to be the Mommy to that little busta' - and I can't wait to get one more!  

Brooks is 2!

I just wanted to take a minute for myself to document how fun 2 is for us!  I know the "terrible twos" are coming, but so far Brooks is just an absolute hoot and I love hanging out with him.  First of all, I heard horror stories about little boys verbal development and just assumed he wouldn't actually formulate understandable words for some time.  However, our little dude is a talking machine!  Just a few weeks over 2 now, he can literally hold a conversation with you.  He loves to talk about his guitar, and he can sing all the words to Take Me Home Country Roads by John Denver.  He also asks to watch John "Denber" songs on you tube - I am certain I created a monster.  He is quite the hit with several friends when he pulls out his REAL mini guitar and starts strumming away.  He also, I just discovered last night, can sing the whole song That's The Way Love Goes.  His Daddy sings it to him on his bedtime nights and I had no idea!  He currently is also sitting watching the movie Rudolph - circa 1995.  Willie got it in the $1 section at Target and Brooks LOVES it!  It is the only movie he will watch (longer than 5 minutes on you tube).  He repeats a lot but yesterday told me he "went to the park earlier" - which I thought was very advanced - isn't that an adverb or something?  Some of his favorite lines are:

• "I'm so cute"
• "Whatcha wanna eat" - which is what he says when he is hungry
• "Mommy- it's the Snow Monster" - from the Rudolph movie
• "I play with JJ and Nate" - his friends from school
• "Love you, see ya later" 
• "I need help"
• "I go to Mawnee's house"- my Mom
• and of course "No," "that's mine" and "it's my turn"

He loves playing with his cousin Ellison which we are lucky enough to be able to do a couple of times a week.  He and Ellison are basically the same size and have so much fun having tea parties, eating cookies, and generally destroying wherever they are playing.  Currently sharing is not really a practice they understand and Ellison usually gets her way, but we are worried about the day he realizes he can beat her up!  Hopefully he'll stay this sweet.

Just to be fair, and to remind myself in the future; It took me 40 minutes to write this post.  I was disrupted by the spill of an entire cup of water, a blow-out poopy diaper, a banana an peanut butter refill, and Brooks request/demand to "get his clothes on and go to Mawnees."  Haha!  Two.