Brennan-25-27 months

Age: 27 months

Brennan is such a dream of a toddler! I can't quite put into words how amazing I think he is! He makes us laugh and smile ALL DAY LONG! He is sweet and cooperative and the opposite of what I thought the terrible twos would be! I know there are lots of phases that children go through, but we are appreciative every day for his demeanor right now.
The way Brennan has welcomed Diem into the family is incredible. He loves her so much. The first thing out of Brennan's mouth when I walk into his room in the morning is either, "Me Daddy" (My Daddy) or "Me Diem" (My Diem.) He needs to see her before he'll do anything else. He always says, "Hiiiiiiii Diem." in the highest sweetest voice possible. He loves to point out her hands, feet, and nose. If Diem cries, Brennan's eyes get red and watery and he puts his hand into his mouth. It hurts him, if she is sad.
Brennan is very predictable when we're in the car. He ALWAYS asks for 4 things. The first is "choo-choo." He loves trains and there's a pumpkin patch near our house, that has "Tommy" train rides. The train is visible from the road, and Brennan thinks of it the moment we pull out of our subdivision. The second thing that he'll say is "pumpkin" again, in reference to the pumpkin patch. The third request is "soothie," because he knows we are suckers and that we will get him a smoothie if he asks in his sweet little voice. The fourth request is "Me drive," which is hilarious! Ryan has held Brennan on his lap, in the drivers seat, when pulling the car out to clean the garage. Brennan really thinks that he can drive now, and says that he wants to drive every time he's in his car seat.
Brennan is still figuring out the English language. He is confused and says "You," when he really means, "Me." when he sees himself in the mirror or in photos. I can understand where the confusion comes from, as Ryan and I say, "You," when we point him out.
Brennan's favorite person is Grandpa Carl. When Grandpa is visiting, Brennan has to tell him everything that he sees and does. Brennan will randomly say, "Me Papa." (I want Papa.) If Brennan is talking to Grandma Barb on the phone, one of the first things that Brennan will say is that he wants to talk to Grandpa.

Outtakes:

Diem-1 month

Age: 1 month

Weight: 10 lbs. 11oz (74th percentile)

Height: 22" (72nd percentile)

Head: 37cm (48th percentile)

Diem has been a dream baby! She rarely cries, usually she'll just grunt and groan. She gives plenty of warning that she's hungry or upset, before letting out a cry. At night feedings, she'll just whimper to wake me up. (Brennan would go from sleeping to screaming in 1 second.)

She's growing like a weed! I can't believe that she's gained over 3 and a half pounds in a month. Diem sleeps so much, she's only awake for 2-3 hours of the day. She's been sleeping a good 4-7 hours at a time at night! In the first couple of weeks, I'd have to set an alarm to wake her up for feedings at night, but because she's gaining so much weight, now I just let her wake up when she wants to nurse. She does cluster feed during the day, usually nursing every hour to two.

She has started to smile already. Brennan gets her to smile more than anyone. She's only given Ryan and me a couple of "on-purpose" smiles, but almost every time that she makes eye contact with Brennan, she smiles! Brennan absolutely adores Diem! It has been the smoothest transition imaginable! Brennan talks to her in this super high voice, that his voice cracks. The sound of him saying, "Bless you...Diem, bless you." when she sneezes is the sweetest thing I have ever heard. Her refers to her as "Me Diem," which means "My Diem!"

My biggest fear with becoming a mother of two, was the thought of leaving the house. I didn't know how I'd go to the grocery store, or run errands. Well, it  has been a breeze. Diem is so content in the Boba wrap that I don't even have to worry about her crying in public. Brennan has been so cooperative, as well. He just does whatever I ask him! I feel fortunate beyond belief!

I love kissing Diem's plump little cheeks and the sweet way that she just melts into me when I snuggle her in the early mornings. I am trying to cherish these newborn moments, because I know they will be gone in the blink of an eye.

Outtakes:

Diem-Newborn

Introducing...
Diem Ariana Rahl
born September 17th, 2015 at 2:02AM.
Diem weighed 7lbs 1oz and was 19 1/4" long.

My labor and delivery with Diem was a 180 from Brennan's. I labored at home for 5 or 6 hours. When we arrived at the hospital, they said it was up to us if we wanted to stay or go back home to labor more, as I was only dilated to 3cm. I knew that we had to stay. Ryan and I walked the halls of the new life center for an hour. I had progressed to 5cm after that hour. Then, I labored in the tub for an hour and a half. When my nurse checked my progression, she tried not to show her panic, as she left the room, to "call in the troops" as she put it. I could hear her say that I had progressed to 8+cm. When she came back to the room, my water broke and I couldn't fight the urge to push. At that moment, another nurse came into the room and they both convinced me that I needed to get out of the tub, asap. I was able to walk to the bed and with one more push, Diem entered the world! My midwife walked through the door, right as Diem was being born. I was in labor for 9 hours and only pushed twice. Ryan was able to cut the umbilical cord. It was perfect! There is no way I could have had my all natural delivery without Ryan! He encouraged me and said just what I needed to hear. When I said that I couldn't do it anymore, Ryan would say, "You are doing it, you're doing it right now!" Diem and I were doing so well, that we decided to only stay the required minimum of 24 hours. We really wanted to get home to Brennan!

Brennan-24 months

Age: 24 months

Weight: 29 lbs. 8oz (68th percentile)

Height: 36" (88th percentile)

Head: 51cm (95th percentile)

How Brennan is two years old, is beyond me! He is the light of our lives! We always say, "Do you think there's any child more loved than Brennan?" and our response is always, "It's not possible!"

Brennan's favorite thing to do is be active! He loves running, and playing on his bikes and ride-on cars. He doesn't stop moving from the moment that his feet touch the ground in the morning, until the moment he is laid down at night! (With the exception of his afternoon nap.) He is full of laughter and smiles all day long.

Brennan has just recently gone to taking one nap during the day. We also decided to stop giving him his pacifier. It has only been allowed in his crib for over a year now. Since he doesn't have his pacifier to look forward to, for nap time and bed time, we have just begun to rock him. Brennan was never one for cuddling, but he really enjoys this time. I'm not sure if he enjoys it as much as us, though! We usually talk about the day and recap everything that he did, or we'll tell him what he has to look forward to, with the next day.

Brennan's second birthday party: