8 Months

Time just flies by! I can't believe Ethan is already 8 months! It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.
Ethan is such a joy! I seriously can't get enough of him.
A few things about Ethan at 8 months:
- Crawling. He gets faster and faster every day. It started as an army crawl and just today he started a few "offical" crawl steps.
- 2 bottom teeth and 2 top teeth popping through.
- Loves to look at himself in the mirror. I say he gets it from his dad ; )
- Still wakes up at least 2 times during the night...sometimes more. Hopefully he will just learns to sleep through the night himself...crying it out doesn't work very well when we only have a one bedroom apartment.
- takes 3, 30-45 minute, naps a day. Occasionally he'll surprise me with an hour + nap (like right now!)
- Great eater and has been learning to pick things up and feed himself (although I still feed him baby food jars and oftentimes pick up the little pieces of food and stick them in his mouth...but he is improving). The only thing he hasn't liked is the Gerber Mac n' Cheese.  Loves strawberries, avocado, bread, bananas, cheerios, and all baby food jars (except the mac n' cheese).
 - Is very persistent and will crawl to something over and over again. He was playing with a plastic bag the other day and so of course I took it away and hid it under the crib (it had diapers from Costco in it) anyways he immediately crawled and stretched his arm under the crib and grabbed the bag and began shaking all the diapers out. After a minute of watching him I threw the bag in the garbage and without skipping a beat Ethan crawled to the garbage knocked it over and began playing with the bag again! Persistent little fellow!
- Favorite "toys" are cords, floor heaters, shoes, plastic bags, toilet bowls...you get the idea.
- Loves the water. The swimming pool and the bath.
- Loves attention and loves other babies.
- Loves his dad. He often cries when Chris leaves to work in the morning. Is a mamma's boy at heart. If he's sad, he wants mom.
- Loves the outdoors, especially the park.
- Is randomly scared of certain people. He bursts into tears whenever he sees my neighbor and my apartment manager, but is fine with most other people.
- He is such a happy little guy and we love him so much!!

Just look at that little face! So kissable! We love you Ethan!

7 Months

A few things about Mr. Ethan at 7 months:

- He loves to chat with himself in the mirror. 

- He is awesome at sitting up and rolling...everywhere! He very mobile and before we know it he will be crawling. Like within days...

- He is great at eating his baby food. I haven't determined a favorite, he seems to like it all. 

- He is not so great at drinking his milk (nursing).  We have to be in the same spot in our apartment, he has to be very tired, and there has to be ZERO distraction for him to nurse. 

- He is a social little guy and loves other babies, kids, adults, people in general. 

- He loves to jump. We bought him a bouncer and he loves it!   

- The other day he "jumped" (fell really) out of his bumbo onto the table and was headed for the floor, luckily I was a ninja and caught him. It gave me a heart attack. He no longer sits in the bumbo. 

- He loves peek-a-boo

- He is very ticklish and has the cutest laugh (check out the video at the bottom)

- He is such a happy baby! 

We love our little guy.

Triathlon

I did my frist triathlon on Saturday and LOVED it! Yeah, it was just a sprint (400 meter swim, 10 mile bike, and 3 mile run) but hey I've got to start small and work my way up, Iron man here I come! Just kidding, I'm not that crazy. But seriously, I can't wait for the next one. 

The swim was interesting...I have never done any open water swimming, other than playing around in the ocean, which surely doesn't give me any sort of advantage. I was a little over confident in my swimming abilities and started at the front and was attacked with swarms of people before I finished my first stroke. After I finally got started, I realized that lakes don't have lines at the bottom like the swimming pool which meant my ability to swim in a straight line was shot. Luckily the swim was only 400 meters so I survived. 

The bike and run felt great! I was proud of myself for finishing the run in 23:17, definitely my strongest  portion of the race. My total time was 1:06:26. I loved it and am so excited for the next one.

 I did the race with 4 other ladies from my ward. So fun!

 Ethan wasn't sure what to think of green headed mom

My fans. 

One lucky girl

Isn't he just the cutest little guy you ever did see? I'm totally not biased at all.
I love him. I love every minute of being a mom. I am so blessed to have a wonderful husband who not only is incredibly good looking but works so hard so I can hang out with Mr. Ethan all day. I'd say, I'm one lucky girl.

Adoption

I have a number of friends and family members who are looking to adopt. I absolutely LOVE being a mom and want everyone I know to experience the same joy that I feel. I can say without any hesitation that I have the absolute best job in the whole world. I want to help my friends/family in any way that I can. This blog post is a shout out to my friend, Julie Lisonbee.

I met Julie while working at BYU Independent Study. From the moment I met her I knew that she was a genuine, honest, and kind person with a great sense of humor! She made me feel welcome and I always looked forward to chatting with her during down time at work.

Chris and I went on a double date with her and Landon (Chris actually went to high school with Landon) and I just remember getting the feeling that they were so in love. They were so sweet to each other the whole time.

I know Julie will make a fantastic mother. She is crafty, athletic, funny and most importantly dedicated to the gospel and her family.

Here is the link to her adoption blog.
http://landonandjulieadopt.blogspot.com/

6 Months

Mr. Ethan is 6 months old today. 6 months! Its seems like just yesterday we brought him home from the hospital! His 6 month check up was yesterday. He did awesome. He was tougher than his mom during the shots, only whimpering for a few seconds.

His 6 month stats:
Head circumference: 44 centimeters (69 percentile)
Height: 27 inches (66.2 percentile)
Weight: 16 pounds 15 ounces (40.25 percentile)

A few things about Ethan:
- Already has his two bottom teeth (they popped through a couple of weeks ago)
- Sitting up really well - although I like to sit behind him because he still topples sometimes
- Awesome at rolling from his back to his stomach, but struggles to roll from his stomach to back (he can do it - just not as easily)
- Sleeps best on his stomach - just like his dad.
- Naps for 30 to 45 minutes tops, unless I'm holding him then he'll go for an hour or two.
- Goes to bed between 6:30 and 7:30 and then wakes up twice for feedings and is up in the morning around 7 - I think he sleeps great. His doctor wants me to cut out the midnight feeding...
- Starting to love solid food. Funny story, my mom and our friend Lyn came to visit and the first day they arrived I told my mom that he loves to eat the food I am eating but isn't a fan of his baby food. Well, grandma was full of magic tricks. Warm the baby food up and add rice cereal so it is thicker. It never occurred to me that babies liked their sweet potatoes warm. Thank goodness for grandma!
- Loves peek-a-boo / to be surprised
- Cutest laugh! *the video at the bottom is of him laughing with Chris - you have to watch - it's to die for. I'm not biased at all : )
- Adorable smile!
- Beautiful blue eyes
- Such a happy baby!

At his doctors appointment

Ethan with grandma.

I am still learning how to feed Ethan. Most of the time Ethan looks like this afterwards.

Sitting

He wakes up so happy. If you look closely you can see his two bottom teeth

We love our Ethan!

Turning 2

My precious son, Collin, would be turing two today. It's hard not to feel sadness by his absence. I know that him coming to earth for 3 short days was and is part of God's plan for our family. I do not question God's plan. I do miss him though. In the busyness and joy of taking care of Ethan, I sometimes feel guilty for not thinking about Collin as much. I know what you'll say... you shouldn't feel guilty. I just don't want Collin to ever be forgotten. The other day, while Ethan was napping, I was overcome with emotion thinking about Collin, about the joy of becoming a mother. I remember the joy of holding his tiny feet in my hands, talking to him about his future and the fun we would have, asking him what sports he would play. I remember seeing his perfect little body and thinking he was the cutest, most perfect baby I had ever seen. I also remember the heartbreak of holding him in my arms as he took his final breath. I remember wrapping his tiny body in a blanket and placing him in a casket with a picture of us - mom, dad and Collin. I remember the pain and sorrow in the days/weeks/months following his death. This reminiscing is a tender mercy from God, reminding me that I will never forget Collin and that it's okay to be happy and its okay to love every minute with Ethan and that loving him doesn't take away from Collin.

I am so grateful for all three of my boys. Chris, Collin and Ethan. Today, I am particularly grateful for Collin. He taught me to rely on my Savior for strength. He taught me to appreciate my loved ones more. He brought Chris and me closer to together. He taught me that life is precious and to appreciate the little things. He provided our family with an even stronger resolve to live worthy so we can be reunited as a family one day. Collin will always be my baby boy. And today, I want to say, Happy Birthday Collin. We love you!