Little Alex update

Little Alex is 18 months and is looking more and more like his daddy, and is getting cuter everyday.  Everyone we meet is envious of his beautiful blue eyes and long curly lashes.  He loves to climb on all the furniture now and is starting to enjoy looking at books a bit more.   He babbles constantly (while interjecting a few English words every now and then).  He says hi, Jesus, bubbles, cheese, baby and we think tree, light, fish, balloon, cow and ball.  He can say EIEIO (from the Old McDonald song) and other various animal noises and can identify several body parts and pictures in his books.  He loves to make the sign of the cross (as much as he can anyway) and sometimes reminds us by doing it on his own during mealtime if we forget to have him do it beforehand. He also has the most adorable facial expressions; the most common being a perplexed, furrowed brow look that usually breaks into a big smile when we imitate his look. Oh, and he is finally getting some more teeth after 8 months of no action!  He continues to be a very content little boy and walks around with a smile on his face all day.  We thank God for giving us such a wonderful little boy to raise.

 

 More dancing videos:

 

 

 

Thanksgiving

We were so blessed that my family was able to come down for Thanksgiving and we had a wonderful time. They arrived late Wednesday, and came over Thursday morning to help me get the turkey ready.  I felt so clueless since I have never cooked a whole turkey before, and they were a big help.  They had fun playing with little Alex and we just relaxed and watched football while the turkey cooked. After a yummy meal, we couldn’t do much but sit around.  My mom helped me start a Christmas stocking I had gotten to make for little Alex, and agreed to take it home and finish it for me since I have no time or talent for crafty things.  The next day we did some Christmas shopping and went to our favorite Mexican restaurant, Lupe Tortilla.  It was delicious, as always, and we were entertained by Bobby as he struggled to get through his ultra-spicy fajita meal.  We then headed over to their hotel for a dip in the pool.  The next days we just relaxed at home some more.  Little Alex loved having other people to drag around and had fun pulling them into his tent, and dancing to the music Amanda played on her phone for him. My parents went to Mass with us that night and then we all went out for bbq later.  Sunday was sad as it was time for them to return to Denver.  We went to the park and walked around Waterway Square before saying our farewells.  Thanks for everything guys!  Can’t wait to see you in March!

Halloween

Here is my cute little boy dressed as The Hulk for Halloween!  I’m glad I was able to get a few pics of him with the hat part before he pulled it off.  I even had some Hulk gloves that I got as a white elephant gift for Christmas one year.  He didn’t really wear them, but he enjoyed paying with them since they make lots of sounds.

 We did several fun events around town.  The first one we went to was the Trick-or-Treat trail at Waterway Square.  There were several booths set up and the kids went around and played games and got candy.  Little Alex was too young for a lot of the games, and it was super crowded so we just let him play at the splash pad. 

 The next weekend we went to Halloween playdate at the home of a mom from one of my mom and babies groups.  It was fun seeing the all the super cute kids in their costumes and of course little Alex had fun playing with all of Dylan’s cool toys.  The kids played in their moonwalk for awhile before it got to hot. 

 The weekend before Halloween I took Little Alex to the pumpkin patch!  We had a good time playing in the patch and seeing the animals, and got a big pumpkin to take home and carve!  

We went to a party on Halloween and had so much fun!  The host went all out with the decorations and she had tons of great food (dinner was the most delicious brisket) and activities for the kids.  It was getting late by the time everyone decided to head out to go trick-or-treating so we didn’t take little Alex, but he was pooped from all the partying anyway.  He will enjoy it more next year.

Quick update

Just a quick update on my main man and I, as almost all these posts are about the little one!

Alex successfully defended his dissertation proposal a few weeks ago (congrats, babe!) and can now really start getting into it.  He has 4 months to make a good dent in it before the draining days of life with a newborn (and now a toddler) begin. 

I have been feeling great and am halfway through with my 2nd pregnancy! I wasn’t very sick the first trimester, but even now, at almost 21 weeks, I still feel mildly nauseous once in a while (girl, maybe?). I have been feeling the baby move since 15 weeks and Alex felt him/her for the first time last night!  We have our anatomy ultrasound on Oct. 29^th, but will not be finding out the sex, as we love the surprise at the end. Please pray that everything looks good!  Here is a belly shot at 15 weeks:

CA trip

We took a quick weekend trip to Sacramento, California to visit family and friends the end of September. I was a bit nervous about sitting on a plane for 4 hours with my super-active little boy, but he did quite well on the trip there. He enjoyed playing with a cup of water and spoon for a long time, and I also got some cheap toys (a plastic tool set) to introduce when things got rough. He also enjoyed running up and down the aisles and entertaining the other passengers along the way. After we landed, we got our rental car and decided to get lunch at Roundtable Pizza (Alex had been talking about it for weeks before we left) It was very tasty, and was good to relax after our long flight. We then got back in the car and drove to Vallejo (a suburb of San Francisco) to visit Alex’s sister Helena. Little Alex was pretty grumpy by the time we arrived since he hadn’t slept much, but Helena’s little dog Abby put him in a much better mood. They had fun playing with tennis balls on the floor while we visited. We got some yummy gelato, and had dinner at Black Angus before heading back to Sacramento. It was a very tiring day (especially for little Alex) so we were looking forward to getting to our hotel and going straight to bed. Unfortunately we had some issues when we arrived to check in, and had to change rooms twice (one room had the wrong size bed and the other had a lock that didn’t work).

The next day we met up with our friends Nick and Lesley and their 16 month old daughter Sophia, and took a trip to San Francisco. Little Alex slept almost the whole 90 min. trip and was ready to go when we arrived. We met up with some other friends (Tony and Sarah and their 3 kids) and had some yummy sourdough sandwiches at one of the restaurants along Pier 39. After that we took the kids to the aquarium. It had a long water tunnel full of various fish and sharks and even a scuba diver! Here are some pics:

We spent the rest of the afternoon strolling around the Pier (it was unseasonably warm in SF that day), watching the sea lions, and riding the carousel:

After walking around the Pier for awhile, we went to Tony and Sarah’s house for dinner. Sarah is a wonderful cook and made a yummy roast, mac and cheese, and potato salad. Little Alex had a blast playing with the other kids and checking out all the cool toys.

Sunday morning we went to Mass with Nick and Lesley and then went to breakfast with them and their parents. While we were waiting for our food, Nick and Lesley announced that they are expecting again (Yay!) and it was fun to see the reactions of all the grandparents! Prayers for a happy and healthy pregnancy for mom and baby!

We spent the rest of the day relaxing at Nick and Lesley’s house. The boys watched the 49er’s game, and Lesley and I visited and played with the kids. That evening Helena came up and we went to the Elephant Bar for dinner.

Monday morning we headed to the airport for our trip back home. It was so great to see Helena and our friends, but it was nice to get home and get back into a routine. We are grateful our little traveler did so well on not much sleep, and that everything went smoothly. Thanks everyone- we had an awesome time!

My little dancing man

Little Alex loves to dance to anything. This typically means music of course, but he has been known to get his groove on to the washer/dryer, or when he hears the sounds of the printer printing. It cracks us up every time. It’s hard to catch on video because he will stop if he sees the camera, but I was able to catch a bit when the tv was on:



And here is one of him showing off his latest dance move (spinning) while daddy sings to him:

Summer Fun

 We had a great summer visiting family and trying to find some fun activities that didn't involve spending lots of time in the dreadful Houston heat.    Here are some pics:

Playing with bubbles in grandma and grandpas backyard. 

 He started walking 2 weeks after his 1st birthday!

Here’s a pic of little Alex “talking” on the phone. He’s gotten more accurate with the placement of the phone, but it used to end up halfway behind his head!  He loves to carry on conversations in his own language for several minutes at a time.

We went to watch some fireworks at Waterway Square for the 4th,  but they didn’t start until almost 9:45.  At that point we were all tired and ended up walking back to the car before they even started.  We did catch some on the top level of the parking garage though.  Many people were camped out there, and probably had a better view than the crowds along the waterway!

 We got a great picture of him trying his first popsicle (lime).  His face is hilarious, and he usually loves sour things so it must have been the coldness that he wasn't used to. 

After a few more tries, he enjoyed sucking on it for a bit. 

Here is a video of our trip to the beach in Galveston:

We got a wonderful surprise this summer when I found out I was pregnant!!  It was kind of a shock (a good one) as I hadn’t even gotten my period back after breastfeeding little Alex, but we are very excited to welcome Baby Lynch #2 in early March!  I am almost 16 weeks now, and was blessed with hardly any morning sickness.  Can’t wait to start feeling those little baby kicks soon! 

Little Alex’s first year (and the 9 months prior)

Ok, before you read, just a disclaimer that this is a LONG post. It is mostly for my benefit so I can look back and remember the details of this wonderful time in my life. I just wanted to recap the memories of my pregnancy, birth and 1st year with my precious son before the details become fuzzy. If you don’t want to read through everything, feel free to skip to the pics and videos I am going to post!

Pregnancy: (Date of Conception: October 20 or 21st, 2008)

One of the wonderful benefits of Natural Family Planning (NFP) is the ability to know your body very well. By observing my fertility signs, I was able to know the day (well one of two days) I ovulated and when little Alex was conceived! I got a positive pregnancy test 10 days later on Nov 1, 2008 (All Saints Day). I had just gotten back from a business trip in Chicago the day before, and was enjoying my Saturday at home with Alex. I knew there was a good chance I might be pregnant so I decided to test. The line showed up, but was pretty faint. I told Alex I might be pregnant, and proceeded to go out and buy more (just to be sure). I took a test every few days for a week and line got darker and darker! I scheduled my first pre-natal appt. for a few weeks later. It was so long to wait, and I was so unsure about everything. I didn’t really feel pregnant at this point and was actually wishing I would get sick, so I would have some confirmation other than the positive pregnancy test! I finally got my first ultrasound at 6 weeks 2 days and saw the tiny baby and heartbeat! It was the most amazing thing ever, and the pregnancy now felt REAL! The first trimester flew by; before I knew it we were in Denver for Christmas getting ready to announce our special news to extended family and friends! My mom was saying the prayer before the meal, and at the end she said “and thank you for the little baby that is growing in Lisa’s belly” or something like that.  Everyone starting screaming and congratulating us. I was sick from about week 7 to week 14, but only threw up a handful of times and could usually curb the nausea if I ate something as soon as I woke up. The second trimester was the best, because that is when I felt the baby move for the first time! I think it was about 18 weeks when I first felt something, and by 20 I was sure it was the baby. Alex felt him a few weeks after that, and we enjoyed feeling the baby getting stronger and stronger every day throughout the pregnancy. I was really blessed to have an easy pregnancy; the only issue was some upper back pain on one side under my ribs. This only lasted a few months though. I slept relatively well though, and made it a point to get plenty of rest. As our first anniversary approached, I was feeling good, but was very ready to meet the baby. Little did I know I wouldn’t have to wait as long as I had anticipated!

Birth: (June 29th, 2009 at 9:35 p.m.)

About 10pm on the night of our first anniversary, I started having contractions. We were already in bed, so I stayed there for awhile wondering if it was false labor since I was only 38 weeks. They didn’t go away so I moved to the tub as they started to get mildly painful. I moved between the tub and bed all night wondering what I should do about work in the morning. I still wasn’t sure if it was the real thing since they weren’t that painful so I decided to go to work (so I wouldn’t have to use any unnecessary vacation days). I assured Alex I would return it things got worse. A few hours after I got to work, the power went out. I started talking to my cubby mates and told them I was having contractions. Of course, everyone starts freaking out and soon the whole floor knew what was going on! I work with several nurses, so they all started coming over and feeling my belly. “Those are real contractions!” they told me. Even though I wanted to stay, everyone was adamant that I leave immediately and my boss and co-worker were nice enough to drive me home. Once I got home, things got a bit more painful so I started timing the contractions. They were all over the place-between 5 and 12 minutes apart. Later in the afternoon I called my doctor and talked to the NP. “Sounds like early labor, which could last for days” she told me. DAYS!? Back to the tub I went, dreading the thought of having to endure this for days. Luckily things sped up quickly from that point on. Around 5 or so, I was bleeding a bit with each contraction (which I was told later at the hospital can happen sometimes when you dilate quickly) and was worried so I called the doc and they told me to go to the hospital. Once Alex got home from the store (he was picking up a few items) we packed up and left. We decided to do valet parking so we could get inside quicker, and proceeded to make our way to L&D (we probably looked so silly with all the stuff we had-including my huge exercise ball). They got me in quickly and measured me to see how far I had progressed at home. 7cm! Yay! We made our way to the room and got all settled. I thought the exercise ball might help so I sat on it but quickly decided all I wanted to do was lay in the bed. When I stood up to get back into the bed my water broke and gushed all over the floor! I don’t remember how long it was, but at some point they said I was 8 or 9cm and it was time to call the doc. Not long after I had the sensation to push, but didn’t know if I should yet. I told them and they got me ready. The doctor barely made it in time! I pushed about 3 or 4 times and little Alex arrived- 6lbs. 8 oz! He was born on the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul (that is why his middle name is Paul). The first time I held him was the most amazing moment. He just stared into my eyes and was content while I held him (that didn’t last for long). They quickly got him all cleaned up while I got stitched up and moved to the recovery room. Alex went down to the café to get me a yummy turkey sandwich ( I hadn’t eaten much all day) and we anticipated the return of our precious little man from the nursery. I couldn’t have asked for a better delivery (ok, ideally I wouldn’t have had an episiotomy). I was happy I was able to have a drug-free and uncomplicated birth, and that little Alex was healthy.

1st Year Memories:

Little Alex’s 1st year was definitely a whirlwind! The first three months were hard, but very rewarding. I LOVE the teeny-ness of the newborn stage, and we loved watching every little move he made. Luckily, my parents were able to come down the first weekend we were home to meet their grandson. It was so nice to have their help, and when they left we were looking forward to two weeks later when they would return with Amanda and Bobby. I had some breastfeeding issues early on, but I was determined to give him all the milk all I could (I pumped in addition to nursing and was able to give him breast milk for almost a year). He was very fussy and squirmy when he was young, and a lot of times we couldn’t figure out how to console him. Those first smiles were so precious though. Anyway, I am jumping ahead. Back to when he was 3 weeks old- we asked our friends Nick and Lesley to be little Alex’s godparents, and Nick was able to come to Houston for the baptism! So along with my family, we joyfully watched as he was reborn in Christ, and we celebrated the newest little Catholic with some sandwiches and cookies at our house afterwards. He was pretty fussy through the whole thing, but was actually calm when the water was being poured over his head! It was a very special day. We tried going to daily Mass while I was on maternity leave, and I remember thinking I would never make it through a whole mass again, because if he wasn’t fast asleep in the wrap, he was usually crying. I had to go back to work when he was 12 weeks old. It was a very sad time, but Alex takes great care of him during the day. The next few months were fun as we marveled at how much he was growing and learning. He rolled over for the first time when we was 4 weeks old (it was a fluke though; he didn’t do it again for several more months). He stated to coo shortly after his first smiles, and the most adorable laughs followed. His favorite game early on was peek-a-boo. He would laugh his head off every single time, sometimes for long periods (one time I think we played for 20 minutes or more). I don’t remember when he grasped his first object, but I remember laughing about how hard he would try to move his little fist from in from of his face to try and grab something. I loved watching him kick and punch his little arms and legs when he was lying down; so cute! Although he had a variety of sleep aids (mommy’s breast, the swing) he slept fairly well and we are happy to say that we never got too sleep deprived. He started sitting up on this own around 6 months (just in time for Christmas!) and rolling over (both ways) shortly thereafter. He didn’t start crawling til around 10 months, so in the meantime he rolled everywhere he wanted to go. In January, we moved up to the Spring/Woodlands area so I would be closer to work (before my commute was 45 min one way-yuck!) My parents came down to help us. It was such a big job, and we couldn’t have done it without them. It has been so nice being only a few minutes away. I get to come home for lunch everyday and see my boys! In February, he took his first plane ride to see grandma and grandpa in Denver! He did such a good job on the plane. He was entertained by kids and adults making faces at him from across the aisle and he slept the rest of the time. Ah, how I miss the days when he could fall asleep anywhere! We had a good time visiting everyone, and he even got to play in the snow! Like I said, he didn’t start crawling until 10 months (we thought he might go straight to walking), but after he learned, there were so many more opportunities for getting into trouble, and he took advantage of all of them. We baby-proofed the apartment, and he has lots of fun getting into EVERYTHING. Mealtime has been pretty easy, especially when daddy sings silly songs to him. I haven’t identified any food aversions, but this may change when he reaches the picky toddler stage. It has been so much fun to see him blossom into such a fun little person. He is SUCH a happy baby and is so fun to be around. I don’t think I have ever smiled or laughed as much as I have since he was born. I am so blessed to have a wonderful hubby and sweet baby boy!

Some fav pics and videos:

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