All thumbs!

For the past week Sloan has been desperately trying to figure out how to get her thumb in her mouth. She gets frustrated and lets out a little squawk after trying for a bit usually. I've tried to pry her little thumb out of her tight little fist to help her out a little, but she just tucks it back in so quickly. When she is trying she usually ends up sucking on her knuckle which satisfies her a little, but it just takes up so much room in her mouth!

Ignore my horrible camera work...

"Hey look...this is what I was sucking on!"

xo JBM

Wordless Wednesday

Noodlecise take two!

Since NoodleE has gotten bigger I've started changing her in her crib so she has more wiggle room, and boy does she like to wiggle! As soon as her diaper comes off her legs start kicking! I give her lots of naked time in there and she loves it! Maybe one day she will actually sleep in there! ;)

I didn't realize how long I was taping for, but here is a video of Sloan getting her little leggies moving!

After all that exercise she was ready for a cookie! (of course Toby was too)

She'll have to wait until I "filter" it for her!

xo JBM

Noodlecise!

I really wanted to try to keep our house free from giant plastic contraptions, but NoodleE loved the exersaucer at a playdate so much I had to get her one. She is still a little small for it, so I have to wrap a blanket around her and only let her go in it for about 5 minutes total a day, but it is so cute when she sees another one of the "things" and gets all excited! Of course on the video I took she is more interested in looking at the camera and Toby!

And here is a picture of her just being cute in it!

xo JBM

Dear Sloan: Two Months

I can't believe how much you have changed in just one month, and how much you have already changed since your birthday just two months ago! You are growing like crazy and will be getting ready to go off to school soon it seems!

Your Auntie Elsie sent you this adorable onesie and I couldn't believe how grown up you look in this picture! SLOW DOWN! I love this time with you and don't want you to grow and change so quickly! You are so snuggly and I fear the day that you think you are too cool to snuggle with your Mama.

As much as I would like you to slow down, it is amazing to watch you growing. Everything is so new to you and I can see you taking it all in with awe. You aren't just a little noodle anymore, you are growing a personality! I still call you noodle though, and almost exclusively call you NoodleE, sometimes I think I better call you Sloan everyonce in a while just so you don't grow up thinking that NoodleE is your name!

Your Daddy started trade school this month (January 4th) which was tough on us. He is gone alllll week, but gets to spend the weekends with us. I was enjoying the extra room in bed, but you have decided to take up that space! Everyone keeps telling me you will never leave our bed if I don't get out of the habbit now, but you are so snuggly and sleep better close to your Mama. I don't mind if you stay a little longer, but if you are old enough to be reading this, and are still in bed with us....please get out!

Daddy gets to come home to lots of smiles and coo's and goo's. This month you really started to recognize us and will try to talk to us, but you're very polite in waiting for your turn to talk! Your smile is so bright and your eyes just light up when you smile, but so do mine - it warms my heart to see you smile and that little smile makes me want to give you everything in the world you could ever dream of.

We have been on lots of playdates this month, and you seem to enjoy them! Tuesday's we go to the Early Years Centre, and Thursday's we have been getting together with some of the girls and their little ones that we met at the EYC. The first time we went you slept for the whole time, but now you stay awake and then crash when we get home!

Toby is still wondering when you will be leaving I think. He feels a little out of place, but has warmed up to you a little. At least now he will sniff your head now and then, but he still sighs loudly when you disturb his sleep at night!

I hope you feel all the love that your Daddy and I have for you. We couldn't imagine not having our little Noodleeenee with us and are looking forward to a lifetime of love with you!

Two months old and snoozing in Daddy's arms...

xo Mama

Pet-troductions

Randi recently posted an introduction to Kobe and Lewis on her blog and I thought it was so cute I wanted to do the same for Toby and Bane! This blog just started out as a place to keep track of my pregnancy (I would like to find a way to print all of my posts for Sloan's scrapbook), and has evolved into a blog about Sloan mainly, but we can't forget about our other family members! So here it goes...welcome to the furry members (or non-hairless members) of the Murphy family!


Toby, March 8, 2004, "Mutt-butt, Bud, Dog-head, Dooter-head, and the original Noodle-head":


This little mutt-butt came to me as a sort-of graduation present. When I was on my way home with all of my earthly possessions packed into my Dad's truck from Laurier after finishing my last exam we stopped in Cambridge for some Timmies and to call my Mum from *gasp* a pay phone! When I was on the phone with her she told me that she saw an ad for Pug cross Boston Terrier puppies and was going to get me one. I was SO excited! Now, every time we drive past that pay phone on the way to or from Brantford I point it out to Matt.


Toby was the cutest little puppy of the litter of 8 and had such a cute little pot-belly. Initially I was looking at another little pup, but Toby came right to me and was quite the little snuggler! We got to meet who we were told was Toby's Dad - a HUGE Boston Terrier...but we have since decided that the lady who we got Toby from must have been delusional as he is clearly a Pug, Beagle cross! A Puggle if you will! Toby came home with us in May of 2004.

When Toby first came home we were living at my parents house for the summer so he got LOTS of attention and loved every minute of it! I wanted to crate train him, but I couldn't stand his whimpers and gave in to letting him sleep in bed with us "just this once" and he has been there ever since (I seem to have taken a similar approach with Sloan! oops!).

We moved to Waterloo in September of 2004 and Toby and Matt and I had our first real home together. We lived in the top story of an old house which had a horrible set of outside steps to get to our door. They decided to replace these steps for us shortly after we moved in and we only had a ladder to access our apartment for a little over a week....so Toby had to take all of his trips in and out of the house under an arm while we climbed the ladder...SO safe! haha Toby didn't take the move too well, he was used to lots of attention and was suddenly home alone a lot more. He ate a hole in our area rug, tore open the backs of our couch and chair, ate the heal off my new leather boot and tried to dig his way out of the front door! He grew out of this chewing phase though and quickly became a well behaved little buddy!

We made two more moves while we were in K/W, each time choosing a place with a park near by for Toby. He adjusted much better with these moves.

Finally in September of 2007 we bought Toby his first house. The main thing we were looking for in a house was a big fenced yard for Toby to have! He has escaped a few times, but for the most part he loves his yard!

Toby had another big adjustment to tackle when Sloan came home...and so far he is just ignoring her. We're hoping that they become best of friends once Sloan is on the move and can actually play with him, but for now, he just acts like he would prefer if she just went back to where ever sh came from!

Bane, November 2, 2007 , "Bane-er (said in a very high-pitched voice), Crazy-Kitty":
I have never been a cat person, so getting a cat was a big deal for me. Matt was the one that really wanted a cat, which surprises most people. I don't have as much of a story for Bane, since he seems to act toward me, the way Toby acts to Sloan...unless he want more food!

I found Bane online through petfinder and we adopted him from the local humane society. I thought if we were going to get a cat, I wanted a big fluffy flat-nosed one, but couldn't fathom the idea of spending hundreds of dollars on a cat, so I opted for the $50 adoption fee...oh, and the idea of saving a cat seemed like a good idea. I thought Bane looked pretty cute and he was described as polydactyl - he has thumbs! Bane came home with us in February of '08.

Bane was a pretty cute kitten, and I warmed up to the idea of having a cat. It helped that Matt had agreed to change the litter box EVERY time since a cat was his idea! Matt changed the first litter box and put on the most dramatic acting job I'm surprised we don't have an Oscar sitting on our mantle (actually we don't even have a mantle...). There was coughing and gagging and a drywall mask and all. After that I pretty much had to take over the litter box duties! I took advantage of the rumour that you can't be near a litter box when you're pregnant and Matt braved the box for a whole 9 months! I think the first thing he said to me when we got home with Sloan was that it was my turn to change the box! lol

Our $50 cat soon became our $580 cat when Bane got a bad bladder infection and had to stay the night at the vets office and have some testing done. He is now on a diet to keep future bladder infections away. I keep telling him he really owes me now!



Bane has only ever known this house and I'm a little worried about what he will be like when we inevitably move. He doesn't do well with change! Toby is quite the guard dog and barks every time someone comes into our driveway, which is Bane's cue to RUN downstairs and hide under the bed.



Surprisingly, Bane has taken to Sloan more than Toby. He comes to sniff her head every time I nurse her and often comes to look at her when she is crying. It's actually pretty cute!





So there we go....I think that pretty much brings you up to speed with the non-hairless members of the fam!


And now, here are Toby & Bane's baby pictures:

Toby looking teeny-tiny in Matt's arms:
Smaller than a work boot!
Toby discovering his new little brother:

Little fluff-head! This pic shows off Bane's extra toes nicely!

xo JBM

Girly Getaway

Sloan, Nana and I got back last night from our first girly getaway - we had a great time!

It was time for the annual steering committee meeting for my work, so I thought it would be the perfect time to go to Toronto so everyone could meet Sloan and I could show her off! I plotted with our executive assistant and made plans to surprise everyone, as well as arrange a room at the hotel (which they generously supplied us with!).

So Tuesday morning we finally (about an hour after we had planned) loaded up the car with just about everything we own and dropped off Toby and picked up Nana and got on the road to Toronto. Sloan is a very good traveller and slept all the way to Waterloo where we stopped for breakfast and then went on to Cambridge and stopped at the Once Upon A Child. We spent quite a while at the shop, picking out lots of adorable outfits for Sloan - I can't wait for summer so she can wear the adorable dresses we got! Sloan went back to sleep and we were back on the road! We got checked into the Novotel and then headed out for a little shopping at the St. Lawrence Market before I jumped into the meeting to surprise everyone. Of course, just leaving the hotel we ran into someone from work who was out for a smoke break, but I swore him to secrecy! ;)

Everyone loved meeting Sloan and were super surprised to see us there! Sloan got passed around a bit and was quiet as a mouse!

We were lucky enough to get together with Laura K and Laura R for dinner at Ichiban...YUMMMM. I stuffed myself with sushi and tempura veggies and had to change Sloan on the bench in the restaurant...FUN! I really do think it should be mandatory for all restaurants to have change stations in them!

Sloan enjoyed her first night in a hotel:

She looked so tiny in the big white bed!

Yesterday we got up and had breakfast with the work group and then headed out for more shopping at the market...but I couldn't take it in there too long - the smell of all the raw meat and seafood was making me sick. We headed to Mavis road for some more shopping and then made the trek home. The roads weren't bad until we got to about Wingham and then we hit some snow and Sloan started to get fussy...but who can blame her, she was in the "bucket" for so long!

All in all, it was a great trip and I'm so glad Nana was able to come with us! It was also nice to get away because it helped to take our minds off missing Matt so much while he is away at trade school.

xo JBM