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Ryder is Pacifier-Free!
Last week was a big week for Ryder in our house! He is officially pacifier free! I remember absolutely dreading getting rid of the pacifier for Chase when he was 2.5 years old and was shocked when it wasn’t nearly as big of a deal as I built it up to be. The same thing happened with Ryder, though we had to quickly shift our game plan for getting rid of the paci when he didn’t respond particularly well to Plan A. With Chase, we cut the pacifier part off of his Wubbanubs, gave him the stuffed animal part to hold and told him his Wubbies were “broken.” He was a little weepy but accepted it and just kind of rolled with the change. (We also made it a point to tell him it was okay if he felt a little sad and that he could hold and snuggle his favorite stuffed animal to help him feel a little better.) With Ryder, we took a similar approach but he didn’t seem nearly as cool with the “broken” Wubby. I quickly said, “Maybe Baby Rhett would like your Wubbies now since you’re such a big boy!?” Ryder absolutely lit up at this idea and we ran downstairs together to “give” Rhett his Wubbies. He was so excited to give something special to his little brother! After that, he just kind of accepted the fact that he no longer needs a Wubby! Phew! We are quite proud of our little guy for handling this transition like a champ.
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A Mini Rhett Update
It’s crazy to me how quickly babies change. Rhett is almost four months old and has become so alert, smiley and expressive. It’s so fun to feel like you can really interact with him beyond just holding and feeding. He does these amazing gurgly giggles that light me right up and kicks and coos with so much enthusiasm. I remember feeling like every month of babyhood just got better and better with Chase and Ryder and that’s certainly the case with Rhett, too. He loves being outside and basically lives in the baby carrier when we’re out and about with his big brothers. Rhett absolutely adores watching Chase and Ryder play and I’m not sure whether he wants to join in the fun or is intimidated by the madness but either way I know he’ll be joining in the craziness soon enough! Chase enjoys cuddling up with Rhett, singing to him and trying to make him laugh while Ryder’s favorite thing to do with Rhett is push him in the stroller at 95 miles per hour. And that basically sums up the personalities of my kids in a nutshell. Haha!
On the flip side of wonderful baby milestones and all the fun baby stuff we have baby sleep which isn’t exactly a cake walk around here. Fortunately the fact that Rhett is our third child fills me with firsthand knowledge and full belief that bad baby sleep is temporary and will improve. We were getting some decent stretches there for a while (consistent 4+ hours!) and within the past two weeks, it’s like Rhett got the memo that the four month sleep regression is coming and is easing us into awful sleep again. I say “again” when, in actuality, we have yet to actually have good sleep over here, but overall it’s improved a lot from waking up in 90 minute to 2-hour increments so I’ll take it!!
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Chase’s Big Catch
Over the weekend Chase had quite the big catch! With help from Ryan, he reeled in a HUGE catfish! We could not believe it! After months of catching little sunnies and the occasional small catfish, that big guy came out of nowhere and shocked all of us. Apparently Ryan is onto something with our hotdog bait! Another shocker was the fact that Chase and Ryan managed to reel in that huge fish with Chase’s little rod. Chase was flying high after his big catch all weekend and now all he wants to do it go back out to the docks to fish and catch another one. Creature Man’s creatures are getting bigger and bigger…
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Ice Cream Making Machines
We are ice cream making machines in our house right now! The ice cream maker Ryan gave me for my birthday is the gift that keeps on giving. I am so into creating festive holiday flavors and experimenting with my own recipes (like the eggnog ice cream pictured above!) but over the weekend, I made a batch of salted caramel ice cream from the blog Barefeet in the Kitchen and it was unreal. I wanted a simple recipe and this one fit the bill. It was easy to make and the rich, buttery caramel flavor put store-bought salted caramel ice cream to shame. I incorporated a sprinkling of chopped shortbread cookies because I love a little crunch in my ice cream and it was fantastic!
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Christmas Menu Planning
As a kid, I have so many great memories that center around certain special dishes my mom would make for our family on Christmas morning. We’d always have cheesepuff casserole and monkey bread to eat while we dug into our stockings and a frothy, sweet orange julius to drink! I would love to create similar memories for my boys and our family now that we’re two years into having Christmas at our own house. Last year, I made homemade cinnamon rolls following this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction and topped them with the cream cheese icing recipe I found on the blog Ambitious Kitchen. They were a huge hit so I’m thinking maybe cinnamon rolls will become a Christmas morning tradition for our family? Cinnamon rolls and monkey bread and cheesepuff casserole!? Bring on all the yummy eats!
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Wrapping Paper Fun
Another random thing I remember loving as a kid on Christmas that I am just beginning for our boys this year is different wrapping paper for each kid. All of Santa’s gifts were always wrapped in one kind of wrapping paper for me and one kind of wrapping paper for my sister and I had so much fun selecting wrapping paper for the boys this year! Chase’s gifts will be wrapped in holiday shark paper while Ryder’s will be wrapped in Santa T-Rex paper. (Rhett’s gifts will be unwrapped since he’s lacking unwrapping skills at the moment… and his gifts are rather limited outside of the amazing Lovevery play gym since he’s pretty darn happy with hand-me-down everything at the moment.)
How are you guys doing on the gift-wrapping front? I actually really enjoy wrapping presents and try to wrap them as I buy them so we’re in pretty good shape over here. Also, I wonder how much longer I’ll be able to write the name of the gift the boys are getting on the bottom of their presents before they are onto me?
Do any of you do this? It’s so darn helpful on Christmas morning when you can’t remember what gift is wrapped up in each box!
So now it’s your turn to play catch up! Please fill me in…
- What are some recipes you’re planning to make before the holiday season is over?
- Do you have any unique holiday traditions you’re hoping to uphold this year?
- Any more homemade holiday ice cream flavors I need to make ASAP?
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Random question: Is Rhett’s checkered blanket by Copper Pearl? I’ve been thinking of getting one for my new baby, and Rhett’s looks so cozy!
Hi! It’s actually by a brand called Beluga Baby 💗 but yes very soft and cozy!!
Ha!! That fish is big…. I can’t believe they were able to reel it in on that little rod. He looks so proud. That’s awesome. 🙂
We were definitely all shocked about that, too!!
If the “Outfoxed” is a board game, we got the same one for my daughter’s birthday last month and it’s such a fun game! She loves it and my 2 year old can also kind of play too, with our help of course. So fun!
I think because of Covid and having nothing else going on, I really planned ahead for Christmas this year and am pretty much all set. It’s a nice feeling and I’m going to try to do it every year!!
Awesome to hear this!! Ryan heard good things about that game and ordered it for him a while back & we hope it’s a hit over here, too!
My grandma got my son a full sized fishing pole and tackle box with all the things when he turned 5 and it is still by far the best birthday present he’s ever gotten! (He’s 9). She lives on a lake and he loved fishing there. Anyway, an idea for Chase someday maybe! Love the update and I always love blog posts like this!
Love that! My father in law gave him a tackle box for his bday and it is definitely put to good use!! He might need an updated rod at some point if catching fish the size of that catfish become the norm!
We are making your cheese puff casserole again this year! Since we are Cajun our menu looks a little different than some: turducken, rice dressing, spinach Madeline, stuffed mirlitons, and of course Mississippi Mud for desert!
I love your updates, long time reader here…keep them coming!
Can’t believe that child caught that huge catfish. Going to have to try hot dogs next time we go.
Love that!! Your meal plan sounds great! And so glad you like that casserole!
Our tradition on Christmas is Chicken and Dumplings. Not traditional at all, but when it was just my husband and I we wanted something yummy and special, but not the full spread of things. This has carried over every year, and now our 4 year old is looking forward to helping make the dumplings!
We also have a video of our son when he was 3 reeling in a carp bigger than he was! You definitely need to upgrade Chase’s rod. Look for ice fishing rods, they’re short so good for kids, but still sturdier than kids rods. So fun!
I keep a list in my planner with each gift numbered and add the number to the corner of the gift tag.
So smart! Love that!
Hi! This is probably just me being naive, but why do you need to know what is in each present? I enjoy being semi-surprised when my kids open their gifts, since I can’t remember what’s what (unless it’s of course it’s a unique size or shape!). Merry Christmas to your family!
Not naïve at all! I just like to know because sometimes the gifts play off each other (example: we’re giving Chase Picasso tiles this year and also a Picasso tile race car set so they kind of go together) and I also like having one of the gifts I think they’ll really love be the very last!
I was going to ask the same thing! That’s a big part of the fun, in my opinion… letting go of some of the control and just letting the kids do their own thing. 🙂
Here’s another tip for the mamas. I usually write my kids’ name with marker too, but I was worried my daughter would start noticing my handwriting (she notices EVERYTHING). I did a quick google search for printable gift tags and printed some quick tags for each of the kids from Santa, and taped them on.
Have a happy holiday everyone!
I made your Chocolate Cake Crinkle cookies for the first time yesterday and they were so easy and fun! And delicious.
My boyfriend and I are celebrating Christmas Eve Eve this year with a big breakfast for dinner! Just a little way to get a little extra festive and have a tradition of our own.
So glad you liked them!!! Looove easy recipes like that!
Oh my goodness that play mat for Rhett is absolutely adorable! My “baby” turns five today and he is our last, so that mat is one of those cute little baby things where I go, “oh, I wish I had that when they were babies!” Lol! As a mom of two boys I do this constantly when I see little newborn or 12 month or smaller baby boy outfits! Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas!
I make a French Toast Casserole for Christmas morning. If we have family over I also make an egg casserole (super similar to your cheese puff casserole) that my husband had growing up.
A tradition I’ve continued from my childhood is that Santa wraps his gifts in gold wrapping paper. The paper looks so pretty with the tree lights reflecting on it. Adds a little more excitement to the day!
I can’t remember…have you tried the Merlin magic suit for Rhett’s night sleep?
Not yet but will be soon!! Chase & Ryder loved it!
Before my two could read we wrapped their gifts in different paper and then Santa’s gift is always wrapped in nicer paper with a bow. Since they are older I don’t do the separate paper for them but Santa still gets special paper and bows.
I’ve made that salted caramel ice cream recipe, it is so good! Love the idea of adding shortbread cookies! I added some toasted pecans to mine, yum!
oooh! i’ll have to add pecans next time — LOVE them in ice cream!
Oh man, I’m due with Baby #2 next month and my daughter will be just about 2.5…I’m dreading giving up the bink!!! But your tips are so helpful, we’ll have to try the one you used with Ryder and see if she’s willing to share her paci with her little brother lol. Her favorite word right now is ‘no’ so we shall see…
Where did you get their special wrapping paper from? I would love to start this but am at a loss on where to buy (would prefer online). 🙂