Micah & Nicole

Subway Art

2012-01-27T10:27:00.000-08:00

Subway art has taken over the web, especially on Pinterest. I've seen tons of cute baby Subway Art. I decided that since I have CS4 and all of its elements, surely I could design my own Subway Art for sweet Kaden. So I set out on a mission. I used different ideas I'd seen on Pinterest, and ran with it. This is what I came up with. I made a few adjustments to my initial design, but I think I like it. We're turning what was our office into play room for Kaden, and I'm thinking this will make it on the wall. What do you think?

Walk me to sleep

2012-01-25T14:57:00.000-08:00

(picture with iPhone, thus the not so great quality)

Kaden & I have been going on daily walks. It's good for us. I don't always want to do it, but I make myself. It's good for the pounds I still want to lose. It's a good change of scenery, and gets us out of the house. The more I make myself get out, the more I enjoy. Last week, Kaden still wasn't feeling 100%, so the length of our walk depended on his mood. However, this week, he's done much better, and we've been able to stay out 30-45min most days. I'm hoping to continue to add time and length to our daily walks. Apparently Monday we went out for a walk a little too close to nap time. As we were rounding the corner to home, I looked down to find him like this. Notice the propped up leg....that's my favorite part!! Usually he props one leg up on the cup holder part, but this time he got really comfortable. Also, notice Sophie (the giraffe). He always has either Sophie or a ball in his hands...one or the other. I make sure he has several toys to distract him while we walk, but most of the time he just holds on to one and enjoys the outside scenery. We're getting to where we love our walk every day!

Lunch time

2012-01-18T14:16:00.000-08:00

Apparently Kaden has decided he's too big for baby food. I mean really...he's 8 months already!! But I haven't really had any luck getting him to eat baby food the past week or so. Every now and then, if I mix it with baby cereal to thicken it up, he'll eat it. But usually an open container just goes to waste. So I've had to explore other options. Enter frozen veggies.

Mr. Independent can grab these and feed them to himself, so he likes that.

He also tries to use a spoon, but as you can see in all the pictures, he has it in backwards. He's only successful if I help him...which he's not a fan of!!

He has the funniest way of grabbing food and feeding it to himself. He picks whatever it is up with his fist, than wiggles his fingers until the food slides up between his thumb and pointer finger.

I don't know how he does it. I've tried it. But he can get anything he wants in his mouth.

We've also noticed that he uses both hands. I actually think he uses his left hand more sometimes. Micah & I are both right handed. So we shall see.

Look at how he focuses on the spoon. He really does want to be using it all on his own.

Yummy food-filled smile!!

Very intently picking up a piece of food.

I think at this point he's trying to figure out why I'm still taking pictures of him eating. He's so darn cute to watch though!!

Notice, even if I give him a bite of my food, with my fork, he has to help hold it & guide it to his mouth. He is a pro at this you know!!

Future musician???

2012-01-18T13:42:00.000-08:00

Now that Kaden can pull himself up, I've caught him climbing up to the piano to play. I've put him in my lap before to let him bang on the keys, but I can only handle so much of that. Anytime I sit down and play, he wants a turn. Luckily, if he's in the standing position, he can only hit a couple of keys at the same time. It's more bearable. The past few times, not only does he play, but he sings along. I've tried to get it on video, but he catches me every time. I will not give up!! It's so cute everyone should experience it!!

8 Months

2012-01-17T19:33:00.000-08:00

So I haven't been off to a great start in 2012. But, in my defense, 2012 didn't start off so great. Kaden got sick (for real) for the first time. He's had a snotty nose, and an ear ache before. But this was his first fever-running, bad cough, double earache, had to go to the dr. to get meds sickness. Then, because my baby is so sweet, he shared his germs with me. So the past few days, I've been not feeling 100%. Oh, and to top it off, Kaden was cutting 4 top teeth all at the same time. So all that to say, sickly/grumpy baby & sickly/grumpy momma, don't make for good pictures. Which is why you're getting them a week late. But, all that aside, you still get a way cute, smiley baby! He's learned now what the camera is, and as soon as I pull it out, he starts smiling.

Stats:

At Kaden's 6 month check-up, he was 16lbs, 10oz and 25.75 in long (25th percentile for both). Last week we went in because he wasn't feeling good. He weighed 17lbs 13oz. So, he's growing. Which isn't surprising cause he loves to eat.

Sleeping Habits:

Oh the wonderful, and not so wonderful, world of sleep. It's an up and down battle for us. Every time we take a step forward, we take a couple backwards. We were doing good with the cryout method, until he learned to pull himself up. Then he'd get stuck in the standing position, and couldn't get back down. Or he'd fall and just get mad. So, we put that aside for a while. Then, when we thought we were doing better, he got sick. Apparently a cough and two ear infections will keep a kid up at night. Oh and so will cutting 4 teeth at once!! But, we're on the down side of all of those things, and I can tell just in the past 2 nights that he's
sleeping better. So we shall see...

Eating Habits:

Kaden has been exploring more foods. He's very independent. He likes to feed himself...which doesn't really work well with baby food. However, he's decided he's not really a fan of baby food anymore. He'd prefer to eat off mommy & daddy's plate. And we try to let him as much as possible. We've also been putting more foods on his tray to let him feed himself. I started buying the baby puffs, and teething cookies. He loves those, and it make outings and going out to eat so much more pleasant!! Plus, he can do those himself. That makes him happy...and makes us very happy! I am still nursing, although we may be starting the weaning process soon. He has 6 teeth...enough said!!

(Look at that little belly hanging out! :))

New Tricks:

Kaden has graduated from the army crawl to the real crawl. I was beginning to wonder if he'd just skip that step and go straight to walking. He still army crawls sometimes, but he definitely crawls now. He's up and down all day long. Now he's figured out how to get back down when he pulls himself up, so he's on the move all day. His newest trick is "singing." The other day Micah pulled out his guitar just to play around. Kaden crawled straight to him and stood there and "sang" while Micah played. For Christmas he got a table that he can stand at. It plays music, and often Kaden can be heard "singing" along. A couple times I've caught him climbing up to the piano to play & sing. It's soooo cute!! My favorite is when I can hear him singing in the backseat of the car. He also waves bye bye now. He's got the hand motion down, and he says something that sounds more like dada, but it's bye bye. He does say dada, although I'm not sure if he knows it's dada. He's quite the talker these days.

Dr. Visits:

We've been to the Dr. twice since his 6 month check-up. Once to get the second half of his flu shot. (The first flu shot comes in 2 doses.) The second time was just recently when we discovered he had a cold and two ear infections.

General Observations:

He has been so fun lately!! We loved spending the holidays with him. He's a mess. Other than still being very much a mamma's boy. (He likes to be able to see me). He's getting independent. He likes to feed himself, hold his own drink, and play with his toys by himself. I believe he thinks he's bigger than he really is. That's ok...he's a smart boy!!

(Giving him a toy was the only way to distract him from grabbing the magnet board...but it was short lived!)

Top 11 in 20011

2012-01-05T15:03:00.000-08:00

Of all the thousands of pictures I took t his year, and I do mean thousands, I tried to pick my top 11 favorites from 2011. That was extremely hard...and probably why I saved this blog for last. But, I did my best. If I had to look again, I'd probably pick 11 new pictures, but we'll stick we these. And they're not in any order.

Totally not a good picture, but I love the moment it captured!!

He was only a thumb sucker for a short while, but we loved it while it lasted!

I don't know what it is about this pic, but it's so Kaden!!

Gotta love cuddly boys!!

LOVE!!

Chubby thighs + feet in his mouth = perfect!

You can barely see the two bottom teeth. And his love for bath time!

Innocence!

Love that big, happy smile!

And his pouty face!!

How grown up he looks!!

Love them all and so much more!!!

2011 in Review

2012-01-05T09:45:00.000-08:00

As I look back over 2011, it was probably our most special year ever!! The first few months I don't have many pictures. I was pregnant and miserable, and I definitely didn't want to be in any photos, but once May hit choosing which pictures to include proved difficult. Here's to 2011 and all of it's wonderful (and not so wonderful) moments...

In January we took the youth to Acquire the Fire. I managed to make it through that weekend without being too sick.

In March we had 2 baby showers. One by my family and one by our church. We also celebrated our 2 year anniversary. I have a picture the restaurant gave us, but it hasn't been put on the computer yet. ;(

This was Easter Sunday and one of the few pics I have while I was big and pregnant.

In April some of our youth threw us a shower and decorated baby onsies.

May was by far our biggest month. We celebrated several family birthdays including: my sister, my mom, Micah's mom & Micah's. But the biggest birthday we celebrated was Kaden's. He surprised us on Mother's Day!!

In May we also celebrated my sister's graduation from high school.

In June Micah celebrated his first Father's Day.

At the end of June, we went to youth camp. Taking our 7 week old to camp was an experience, but we survived and even had fun at the same time!!

In July we celebrated 4th of July as a family of 3 and we had Kaden dedicated. We also made our first trip to Dallas for another family shower.

We also introduced Kaden to the pool for the first time. And he loved it!!

In August Kaden had a couple firsts. He rolled over for the first time, and he saw the beach for the first time when he went with mommy to a women's retreat.

September was an eventful month as well. We received the "go ahead" from the dr to start solid foods. We took Kaden to his first high school and A&M football games. And we went to the county fair.

October's highlights: We cheered on Aunt Daisy as her volleyball team won district champs. We "chaperoned" two field trips with Grammie's class (Blue Bell Factory & Dewberry Farm). We cheered on the Rangers. We got our first two bottom teeth. We went to the Pumpkin Patch twice. And went to Dallas to meet Uncle Brandon for the first time.

November we went to the Renaissance Festival and Celebrated Kaden's first Thanksgiving.

And we wrapped up our year in December meeting Santa, traveling to A&M for Santa's Wonderland, and celebrating Christmas.

We had a great 2011 with so many things to be thankful for!! We look forward to all God has planned for us in 2012.

After Christmas Relaxing Vacation

2012-01-04T11:50:00.000-08:00

**Warning: this blog contains almost 40 pictures. Here's your warning. However, in my defense, I took close to 300!! Just be glad I settled with 40**

The day after Christmas, we loaded up with my family to head out of town for a few days. My parents rented a little house, out in the country, right outside of Bandera. What's in Bandera you may ask...nothing!! And that was the point. We wanted to get away for a few days just to relax with no distractions. We spent on day touring the little town of Bandera. They had cute little Antique shops and boutiques. I don't think the guys enjoyed it all that much, but us girls sure had fun. The next day we traveled about 45 minutes to Fredricksburg. Again, we explored all the little shops, walked around the town square, and ate some yummy food. We had a good time there. The last day we just hung around the house. We walked down to the river to skip rocks and "hike" some. Then we grilled steaks and watched a movie. We had a great time!! It was so nice to get away, turn off the phones & computers, and just relax with family. I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

Playing Fuse Ball the night we got there.

Chillin with Aunt Daisy

Playing with some of his new Christmas toys.

Playing an intense game of Yatzee!

We woke up to these deer in the yard every morning.

Walking around Fredricksburg.

Outside the awesome candy shop!

Someone is getting tired! Until he discovered daddy's coke bottle made an awesome teether!

In the town square.

Walking around the shops.

Bath time in the sink!!

The beginning of our hike.

Skipping rocks by the river

And eating them!

Ryan and Micah spotted a fallen tree that stretched across the river, and they were determined to get there. We did, although our feet were wet and I'm pretty sure there were some battle wound from being smacked by tree branches.

It was about a 3 foot drop, and we all took turns walking across just so we could say we made it!

Eating on the porch.

We had a such a good time! Thanks mom & dad for the trip!!

Family Christmas

2012-01-04T09:36:00.000-08:00

Our little family Christmas was a little different this year. Because we spent Christmas day with Micah's family, on the road, and then with my family, it was late when we got home. Kaden was fast asleep for the night. Since it was late, Micah & I decided to do our gifts, and let Kaden wait until the morning to open his. Once again, I didn't take any pics. But, Monday morning when Kaden woke up, I was ready!

Kaden got all kids of goodies from Mommy & Daddy. Lots of big boy clothes cause he's so quickly growing out of his. Toys & books. He was definitely blessed this Christmas!! We had so much fun with our little guy and look forward to so many more Christmases with him!!

The following were taken after Christmas with some of his new toys!

More Christmas

2012-01-04T09:14:00.000-08:00

I'm noticing as I look through pictures that with each Christmas celebration, I took less and less pictures. In fact, with my dad's side of the family, I didn't take one picture. Probably because we drove straight from Dallas to my parent's house, and as soon as we walked in, they were ready to open gifts. I didn't even get my camera from the car. Oh well, we can only do so much. Kaden got several cute outfits from my Aunts & Uncles. He also got a stuffed dog, Scout, from his cousin Cole. Kaden loves Scout. He sings & talks to him.

This is Christmas night with my family.

Here dad is off to a great start to the festivities!!!

This is the famous stair picture, We take one every year!

My brother & sisters...not really liking the whole picture idea!

Kaden's big present from Grammie & Papa! we can't wait for it to warm up some!!

Kaden was more interested in the paper and boxes than anything else!!

More diapers...that's exciting!!!

And more paper...even more exciting!!

Among other things, Kaden had an A&M beanie & snacks in his stocking.

Playing with his new toys. After being in the car and passed around by family, he was ready to crawl around and play!!

Thank you Grammie & Papa and all the other Gilberts for all of my presents!!

Kaden's First Christmas

2012-01-04T08:46:00.000-08:00

Ok, I realize I am EXTREMELY behind on blogging. We hit the ground running the week before Christmas, and we didn't stop until Micah went back to work yesterday. And to celebrate being back on a semi-normal schedule, Kaden & I pretty much laid around and played all day yesterday. So, my goal today is to catch up on all my blogging: all of our Christmases, our vacation, and my review of 2011. Be prepared to read a lot and look at even more pictures! Here we go...

We started our Christmas celebrations in Dallas. Thursday after Micah got off work, we headed to Dallas. We spent Friday finalizing our Christmas shopping. Saturday, Christmas Eve, we had lunch with his dad's side of the family and dinner with his mom's side of the family. To say that we ate a lot would be an understatement. His Papa grilled steaks for lunch, and then his uncle made lasagna for dinner, so we consumed plenty of yummy food. You'll see in the following pics that Kaden had his share of food too.

Here Kaden is chowing down on a piece of toast. It kept him happy while the rest of us ate.

Kaden is being passed around at Micah's grandparents. To say he got a lot of love and attention would also be an understatement!!

This is Christmas morning when we woke up at Micah's parents house.

Kaden got all kinds of goodies from Grandma & Grandpops. Some gifts include diapers, feety pajamas, a book that sings nursery rhymes, a swing, and rocking chair, two train sets, and lots of other fun stuff!

The swing stayed at Grandma & Grandpops, but we're excited to go back and swing in it!!

Kisses from Maggie.

After opening presents, we all gathered around the fire place to take some family pictures.

Daddy & Kaden

Mommy, Daddy & Kaden

Grandma, Grandpops, & Kaden

Uncle Brandon & Kaden

The whole gang

All the McMahon boys

After presents and pictures with Micah's family, we loaded up to head back South. We still had 3 Christmases to get to!!

Christmas

2011-12-26T11:34:00.000-08:00

This was by far one of my favorite Christmases!! I think there were a lot of reasons, but mots importantly because of the newest edition to our family. We had so much fun with our little man this year. I took tons of pictures!! However, one again, we're currently in the car headed out of town, so I'll work on posting pics later. I also have high hopes of documenting (through picture) all of Kaden's gifts so we can share and give thanks through the blog, but I don't want to make any promises. I'll leave you with this. After travel to Dallas & back, and attending 5 family Christmases, 1 church service, and our own Christmas, this is how I found Kaden & Daddy Christmas night about 9:00pm.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T09:59:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas

from our family to yours!

We hope this Christmas is filled with all the joy of our Savior's birth! Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

7 Months

2011-12-25T09:50:00.000-08:00

I know I'm a little late on this post. OK, about 2-3 weeks late. But we've been so busy with the hustle & bustle of Christmas, this blog post just kept being pushed to tomorrow's to-do list. We're currently in the car traveling from Dallas back home, and thanks to the wireless card we have internet. So, here's the long awaited 7 month post.

Stats:

At Kaden's 6 month check-up, he was 16lbs, 10oz and 25.75 in long (25th percentile for both). Dr. said he's slowed in his growing, but he's doing just fine developing so there are no worries. I haven't done an unofficial home weigh-in in a while, and we're currently on the road for Christmas. I'll try to do that soon!

Sleeping Habits: We're improving in the sleep area. Micah & I decided to start the cry out method. For future children, we will know that when the Dr. tells us to start at 2 months we should listen to him. I just couldn't do it. We tried a couple times, but I would break down. So we decided to try again a couple of weeks ago. The first night we put him down about 9:00 and he cried for about 20 min before he fell asleep. However, he slept unto 7:30 the next morning! I was sold!! It's still hard. Sometimes he goes right to sleep, sometimes he still fights it. And now he can pull himself up to standing, so he fights it even more. We discovered he could pull himself to standing one night when after he fell asleep Micah went to check on him. We do that every night because sometimes his arm is through a bar, his head is on the bumper, or he's all twisted. This particular night, Micah walked in to check and he was sleeping in a standing position with his hands & head rested on the side rail of his crib. It was then we knew it was time to lower the crib mattress. Nap time has also improved. I can usually get him to take 2 naps that are an hour to and hour and a half. As well as a couple that are 30-45 min.

Eating Habits:

Kaden's eating habits have been changing a little. I still nurse at each meal. That hasn't changed. However, we've been exploring more table foods. Things we can mush up. Mashed potatoes, carrots, beans & rice, bread, etc. He's getting to where if he can see "big people" food, he's not gonna eat his baby food. He'll push it away in hopes that mommy & daddy will share whatever we're eating. And typically we do. Also, I started buying teething snacks & baby sacks. He LOVES those!! And they're a lifesaver to have at restaurants. He's getting really good at being able to pick them up and eat them himself. We've tried several flavors in snacks banana, sweet potato, cinnamon maple & cheddar. His first top tooth has just started poking through, so I think sore gums have been affecting his eating a little bit.

New Tricks:

Kaden is on the move. He crawls, he sits, and his newest trick is pulling himself up on the furniture, stairs, crib....whatever he can. He can pull himself up to standing, but getting back down to crawling & sitting is harder. Usually he just topples over. I have to stay really close to try to keep him from crashing down each time he starts climbing. But he doesn't like being restrained. He likes to be able to be down and moving around. He's "talking" and laughing alot these days. I think we hear "dada" but I don't think he realizes he's saying it yet. We're also working on the bye bye hand motion, but it's definitely still a work in progress!

Dr. Visits:

We haven't been to the Dr. since we went back for Kaden's 6 month shots. Our next scheduled appointment isn't until 9 months. Hopefully that'll be the next time we see the Dr. However, he's been tugging at an ear, so we may be back sooner. I know sometimes that can be related to teething, but we're not going to chance it if he keeps tugging.

General Observations:

We're loving every day with our little guy. He keeps us on our toes. We can't turn our backs for a second. He's still very much a mamma's boy which bothers some people, but it's to be expected since I'm a stay at home mom & he still nurses. Hopefully when we begin weaning him, he'll be a little more comfortable around other people. He loves it when his daddy gets home in the evenings. Usually by then we've just had about enough of each other, I'm trying to cook/clean, he's fussy & wants to be held. When he hears the door open, he gets really excited to see dad! As I mentioned earlier, he's working on getting his first top tooth (3rd tooth total), so he's been a little more drooly & fussy than normal lately. We love every day with Kaden, & love to see the new tricks each new day brings.

Kaden Meets Santa--Take 2

2011-12-12T13:59:00.000-08:00

Last Friday my parents took off from work to spend the day shopping. It's one of their many annual traditions. The past few years I've taken off work & joined them. This year I didn't have to take off. Kaden & I tagged along. As we were walking through the mall, I noticed Santa didn't have a line. I couldn't decide if I wanted to pay to have his picture taken. We hadn't planed to visit Santa that day. We went through a few more stores, and I decided if there was no one in line when we passed back by, we'd stop. I guess it was meant to be. We walked right up to Santa. I wasn't sure how K would act. He had just woken up from a nap, and wasn't freely handing out smiles. But, as you can see, he did good. The camera lady had some jingle bells, and that made him happy. I'm glad we stopped. His smile was worth it! We never really did Santa growing up, and we haven't decided if we'll do it with K yet, but it makes for a cute picture!

Kaden's First Meeting with Santa

2011-12-06T17:13:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Kaden & I "chaperoned" another field trip with my mom. We went to the health museum in Houston. Santa & Mrs. Clause were there. I wasn't sure how Kaden was going to react to Santa. He didn't seem to mind too much. I think he was more interested in the teddy bear Mrs. Clause gave him. I didn't get any smiles...but I didn't get any screams either.

I think Santa was very excited to see Kaden. The museum was hosting Special Ed & Life Skills classes. Santa had just had a big group of teenagers take turns sitting on his lap. I think my little 7 month old was a nice break...and relief for his leg. :) He wanted Grammy to get into the picture too!

He also wanted one with me & Grammy, but that didn't really turn out. Kaden was reaching for me. There was a long line & my camera isn't the easiest to turn over to a stranger and explain, so we took the ones we got, and moved on with the field trip.

The Christmas tree had ornaments on it that blew bubbles. Kaden was fascinated by the bubbles. He wanted to catch them so bad!!

It looks as thought he's trying to eat the tree. Not so!! He's just trying to catch the bubbles.

We couldn't get a smile cause he was too preoccupied with the bubbles.

As always, we had a good time with the kiddos in mom's class! We love "chaperoning!"

It's official...the tree is up!

2011-12-02T15:39:00.000-08:00

Sunday night we put our tree up. My sister & a couple kids from the church came to help. We also had another special helper. This is the first time I've EVER had a fake tree. I've always had real trees. However, I think artificial trees are so much prettier when they're decorated...and easier to decorate. We decided to go ahead a by an artificial one, and when Kaden gets a little older, we'll go pick a real one to put in our game room that will be our "family tree."

Here's our cute little helper.

And again...he's helping!

He's so fascinated with the tree!

Micah was the official fluffer. He made sure there were no holes or gaps. He has good patience for that type of thing. I was ready to just throw on the ornaments!

Almost finished....just need the star!

And now we tree to pick off the ornaments. That's the game we've been playing lately.

Here he's trying to get the ornaments off of Papa & Grammy's tree.

Lunch Time

2011-12-02T08:17:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, Aunt Daisy & Serena came over after church to help us decorate our tree. While they were here, it was lunch time for Kaden. They wanted to feed him. I think Daisy was in charge of feeding, and Serena had the camera. Contrary to the pictures, he did manage to get some food in his mouth...I think. Either way, they all had a good time. I foresee future babysitters!

Crafting

2011-12-01T19:04:00.000-08:00

This is why I have a love/hate relationship with the holidays. I have so many ideas, plans, desires, etc... and no time to do all of them. Do you see this mess. Micah tells me often that my crafting spills all over the house. I have a bad habit of starting a new project before finishing the current project. There's not enough help for me out there.

There is a project that I have finished. It was super easy, fun & turned out really cute. I made some Christmas ornaments. Below are the supplies needed. I simply coated the inside of clear Christmas ornaments with some mop & glo, then poured in the glitter.

Ta da...final product. I did several in a bunch of different sizes. I had my sister & her friend make some too. I love the final product on my tree.

Happy Thanksgiving (a little late)

2011-12-01T18:54:00.000-08:00

If you're not on Pinterest, you should be!! It's full of great ideas!! We hosted Thanksgiving this year, so I felt the need to make sure my house was warm & inviting. I already shared the "Thankful Tree" tradition we began this year...that was a Pinterest find. I also added a few decorations to our house that were inspired by Pinterest.

Like the happy fall banner. In all honesty, my intentions were to make a "give thanks" banner for Thanksgiving, but that never got done. Maybe next year. These shelves were built by my hubby.

I made this fall trail mix for two different parties. It was a hit...both times. Not to mention Micah and I snacked on the leftovers for a while.

This was actually not a Pinterest idea. Every now and then I have good ideas on my own. I made this card using Kaden's handprint for the grandparents and great-grandparents. By the way, making turkeys out of a 6 month old's hand print...NOT easy! But, we got it done!! The inside had a little message from the three of us. I didn't take a pic of that.

And, the grand finale, here's our little turkey on Thanksgiving day. He tried some new foods on Thanksgiving. He had sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, & dressing. And I'm pretty sure Papa slipped him a piece of cookie & some cool whip. He's not a rule follower!!

From our little turkey, and all the McMahon's, we hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving! We have so much to be thankful for this year, most importantly, the newest member of our family!!

New Thanksgiving Tradition

2011-12-01T15:59:00.000-08:00

I'm sure several of you have seen this idea (thanks to Pinterest). We decided to jump on board this year. This is our family's "thankful tree." I thought it would be a good tradition to start as a family. Obviously this year Kaden was not old enough to participate on his own, but in the future he will be. And we think it's important to teach him how to be thankful. So I put together this little tree.

Each leaf had something written on it that either myself, Micah or Kaden is thankful for.

Some things, like chocolate, were not as important or serious as others. However, I am VERY thankful for chocolate...some days more than others!!

Other things, like family, faith, salvation, we are grateful for everyday!!

We enjoyed this little tradition. We got lots of compliments on our tree. I hope you took time this Thanksgiving season to be grateful for all we are blessed with. We look forward to continuing this tradition on with our kids!

Swinging at the Park

2011-12-01T15:38:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago, our church had it's annual "Church at the Park" Sunday. We have a short service at a local park, and then we all hang out, picnic, play softball, etc. I took this opportunity to introduce Kaden to his first swing ride. He was definitely a fan. He sat in the baby swing by himself for a little bit, then he took turns swinging with mom & dad. These pictures are priceless!!

He also went down the slide for the first time with his Aunt Daisy. I'm not sure who liked it more...him or Daisy!

All the swinging and sliding wore our little boy out!!!

Our little Monkey

2011-12-01T15:26:00.000-08:00

Halloween night we had some friends and family over to the house to pass out candy. We didn't have as many kids come as we thought we would, but we had a good time. Our little monkey was the cutest kid we had that night for sure!

Our monkey with Aunt Daisy.

Posing for the camera.

Those cheeks are so kissable!!

Our tired little monkey before he gave in to sleep.

It didn't take long!

We love our little monkey so much!!

M.I.A.

2011-12-01T14:31:00.000-08:00

I realize that I have been M.I.A. in the blog world lately. I am sorry for that. I've got several I'm working on, dating all the way back to Halloween. So check back soon, and I promise to have lots of updated pics!!

6 Months

2011-11-10T21:51:00.000-08:00

See that smile?? We get to live with it every day and we LOVE it!! We can not believe we're halfway through the first year. Has it really been that long already?!? We are so thankful for the past 6 months, and for the many more we'll get to enjoy!!

Stats:

I just took Kaden for his 6 month check-up. He was 16lbs, 10oz and 25.75 in long (25th percentile for both). Dr. said he's slowed in his growing, but he's doing just fine developing so there are no worries. Unfortunately, he has his first cold and ear ache, so he wasn't able to get his shots. We'll go back in 2 weeks to get those, as long as he's feeling well.

Sleeping Habits:

I fell like as soon as we take one step forward, we end up taking another backwards. We were just getting back on a good sleep schedule when Kaden came down with his cold. So now he wakes up several times a night. The majority of times, he wakes himself up coughing and I can just give him his paci to make him happy. Sometimes, however, he gets mad/upset and I have to rock or feed him. Hopefully once this cold is gone, we'll get back to a good sleep schedule...hopefully!! He is doing better with nap time during the day. He usually takes at least 3 45min-1hour long naps. If I'm lucky, they last longer than that!

Eating Habits:

Kaden still loves to eat! This is the one area that has stayed consistent! I still nurse Kaden at all meals, and we're having fun exploring different foods. Baby foods we've tried include peas, green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, bananas, prunes, apples, and pears. We've also just started letting him sample foods off our plates. He loves mashed potatoes. If we're having something like carrots, potatoes, peas, etc. that I can smash up and share with him, I do. He loves to eat!!....he came by that honestly!!

New Tricks:

Kaden just about has crawling mastered. He definitely has the "army crawl" mastered. I have to keep my eyes on him now, cause he is on the move. If his eye catches something and he wants it, he knows how to get there. It's so fun and exciting to watch him. He also can just about sit up on his own. Just today he sat up for a minute or so several times on his own. He's still wobbly, but he's definitely getting stronger. He'd start to lean, but he'd pull himself back up. It so exciting to watch the changes occur every day before our very eyes.

Dr. Visits:

We've been to the Dr. a couple times lately. I took him in last week because he had a really bad cough, and I wanted to make sure it didn't turn into something worse. I also wanted the Dr. to check his ears cause he'd been tugging at one. Dr said all looked fine, and Kaden was probably just coming down with his first cold. This week we went for his 6 month appt. He still had his nasty cough, and Dr. informed us he also had his first ear infection. We'll go back in 2 weeks for a check-up and his shots. After that, assuming all goes well, we'll go back at 9 months.

General Observations:

We're loving every day with our little guy. Now that he knows all these new tricks, he's becoming very independent. He doesn't like anything that confines him--car seat, bouncy seat, bumbo chair. He likes to be free and able to move. He's still quite the mamma's boy! He loves lights. Funny story: our rocking chair is located in a corner in our living room. Positioned directly about the rocking chair is the motion detector for our alarm system. He is so fascinated by that thing. I'm guessing it's because it blinks different color lights. I'm not sure, but it's almost got to the point where we can't sit in the chair for anything cause he's too distracted. If I'm trying to feed him or put him to sleep, he'll pop up multiple times to stare at the light. When we walk in that room from any other place in the house, he knows exactly where to look to see the light. He'll twist his whole body around to find it. It's the funniest thing. I'm really looking forward to the Christmas season because I know he's going to love all the lights everywhere!

Happy Half Birthday Kaden!! We look forward to so many more!!

Notice the drool...that's just an accessory to all of our outfits these days!

Renaissance Festival

2011-11-10T12:38:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, Micah's parents came in town to go to the Renaissance Festival. We met up with them for the day to join them. I think Kaden had a good time. Not that he'll remember any of it, but he enjoyed looking at all the sights.

Sitting on the elephant.

I think this is the only family picture we got while we were there.

Bell player. I actually enjoyed listening to him. He reminded me of Phantom of the Opera.

Daddy & Kaden listening to the bells. Kaden actually was listening & watching.

My two men!

My little Renaissance baby. He rocked that hat!!

Cutest pumpkin in the Patch!!

2011-10-29T15:09:00.000-07:00

I've already taken pictures of Kaden in a pumpkin patch, but we went again today. For a couple of reasons. 1. I wanted to attempt to get pictures of Kaden smiling. Attempt #2 was about as unsuccessful as #1. That's ok, I still got some really good ones! 2. Daddy went with us, and we wanted pictures with him. 3. We're having kids over to carve pumpkins tonight, so we needed pumpkins. I'm glad we went again. We had fun! I love my little pumpkin!!!

2nd Field Trip

2011-10-27T21:01:00.000-07:00

Today Kaden and I "chaperoned"our second field trip with my mom. She took her class to Dewberry Farm. We had so much fun! It's too bad Kaden didn't enjoy it as much as I did. However, I know for sure we'll be taking more trips as a family once he gets older. I can't wait until we can take him, and he can actually enjoy it!

With Grammy on the wagon ride.

On the wagon ride.

Passing the sunflower patch. I love sunflowers!

Kaden got to pick his very own pumpkin!

I don't think he thought it was as much fun as we did!

Look at the goats. If he was a little older, he could have fed them. One day...

This thing was called the black mamba. It was basically a swing. I held him while we were swinging. He wasn't quite sure what to think.

At the entrance to the corn maze.

We had fun today. I'm glad I went, cause now I know I can't wait to take him back!!

2 Teeth

2011-10-27T20:47:00.000-07:00

Last night at bath time, I attempted to get pictures of Kaden's 2 teeth. I noticed he had a tooth coming in at the beginning of this month. You couldn't really see it, but you could feel the points if you rubbed his gums. Now both of his bottom, front teeth have come in. They're still hard to see, but definitely more noticeable. Since he loves bath time so much, I knew it'd be easy to get smiles from him. I was trying to see if I could get the teeth to appear in pictures. Getting a smile was the easy part. The hard part was getting the camera at the right angle, snapping the picture at the right time, and trying to keep the camera dry. He gets so excited, he starts kicking and splashing. Usually I get a bath too...rather I want one or not.

So, it took several attempts, but you can just barely see the two little teeth he has at the bottom.

It looks like two little white dots, but they are definitely teeth.

After several shots, he became more interested in the wash cloth, and getting a big enough smile was not going to happen!

We'll keep trying!!

Ranger Fan in Training...

2011-10-27T20:36:00.000-07:00

In our house, we like to start ~~brainwashing~~ training them early. If Micah has his way, Kaden will grow up to be as big of a Ranger fan as he his. However, if Papa & Uncle Ryan have their way, he'll cheer on the Astros. I think dad will win out on this one! Him & Kaden have been watching a lot of Ranger games, and this past week, we've been cheering on the Rangers for the playoffs and World Series. Kaden won't remember it, but Micah's been waiting his whole life for a World Series win! Hopefully we get it tonight!!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-25T21:50:00.000-07:00

Last week my friend Melanie and I took our boys to the pumpkin patch. Yes, they're only 5 & 8 months old, but every child needs a fall picture in a pumpkin patch. So, we planned to meet at a church pumpkin patch that was close to her house. I got there first and realized there was no one there. I drove around the parking lot until I saw a sign that said Pumpkin Patch open 11 to dark. It was 10. I called her to let her know it wasn't open yet, but she was right around the corner. When she got there, she parked beside me so we could decided what we wanted to do. She started to convince me that there was no gate, no fence, we weren't going to steal pumpkins, we just wanted pictures, and we'd be done before anyone got there. I didn't really need convincing. I figured they trusted that no one was going to come steal pumpkins, or they'd have more security. I'm confessing all this, because we may have broke into a church pumpkin patch. But honestly, we just took pictures!!

Kaden was not at all cooperative. He was in a good mood, but there was no smiling! It didn't matter what silly faces, sounds, voices, etc. I made. I tried all my usual tricks, but nothing worked!

Look at that face! It's like he's letting me know there will be no smiling!

Apparently he was just in a chill mood! Good thing he's cute no matter what kind of face he's making!

I thought maybe if I sat with him, maybe a little tickle, I'd get a smile!

Nope! But, we had fun. At least Melanie & I did anyway. I'm not sure the boys had any clue what was going on, except that their moms were acting crazy!

We tried to leave before anyone got there, but we were caught. As we were walking to our car, someone came out and asked if we needed help or found the pumpkins we wanted. We told them we were just taking pics. I don't think he was in charge of the pumpkin patch, but he told us he'd help us if we needed it. After we left, I felt like I should have bought a pumpkin. Maybe I'll go back. We're carving pumpkins this weekend, so I do need a pumpkin!

Daddy Babysits

2011-10-25T21:34:00.000-07:00

On Monday nights, I go to a ladies Bible Study. We're going through a 12 week Bible study of Kay Arthur's "Covenant." It's been great! I totally recommend it! Anyway, since I get out for a couple hours to hang out with other ladies, daddy gets to babysit. At first I wasn't sure how well it was gonna go over. Not because I don't trust Micah, but because Kaden is a little bit (under statement) of a momma's boy. He's with me all day, so he comes by it honestly. And, the evenings tend to be when he's the grumpiest...not that he's always grumpy, but he's not always in the best mood either. Anyway, we are on week #5, and so far he's done great! Daddy keeps him entertained by playing with toys, watching the Rangers, napping, watching the Cowboys, eating, watching the Rangers, sitting outside, watching the Rangers, etc. Micah says he's trying to train him early! I miss my boys when I'm gone, but it's so nice to get out for a little bit and have adult conversation.

Kaden's First Field Trip

2011-10-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, my mom is a Life Skills teacher at one of the local high schools. When I was teaching, I'd get jealous of her cause she gets to go on so many field trips. We went on 2 a year; Mom goes on 2 a month. Ok, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but I think she does try to plan at least 1 a month. When I was teaching, I always wanted to take off and go with her as a chaperone. Well, now that I'm not teaching anymore, Kaden & I went to chaperone. :-)

We went to the Blue Bell Creameries. If you're not from Texas, or one of the lucky states that Blue Bell has branched out to, you might not be familiar with Blue Bell. Let me just tell you, it's the best ice cream in the country! The main factory is about an hour from here, so we loaded up to go on a tour. When we went in there were Blue Bell hats for everyone. Above, you see Kaden sporting his. He actually did really well, and wore it until we walked outside and the wind took it away. I do believe it was the windiest day of the year.

As we went through the tour, I felt like we were on an episode of "How It's Made." We got to see all the workings of the factory & learn all kids of fun facts. Like: it takes 50,000 cows a day to supply milk to the Blue Bell Creamery. And Homemade Vanilla is still the #1 selling ice cream flavor. They produce it from 5:00am-4:00pm (the hours of operation) every day just to keep up with demand. Interesting, huh? Above is my mom, Kaden, and one of the PALS that works with the Life Skills students. She informed me that she's been adopted into our family, so she's Kaden's Aunt. Kaden didn't realize he had another Aunt. :-)

Here we are posing with Bessie (I don't think that's here name. I'm pretty sure it's Blue Bell). We had fun on our first field trip. We're going on another one with them next week (see what I mean!). Stay posted for pics from that one. It'll be a fun one!!!

Meeting Uncle Brandon

2011-10-18T22:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went up to Dallas. Micah's oldest brother is in his last semester of law school up in Pittsburgh. He decided to take a much needed break from school and come down for the weekend to see family. He had never met Kaden, so we headed up to Dallas so they could meet. Other than visit with family, we didn't do too much.

We sat outside...

Kissed the dog...

]

Played with the dog...

Played with our toes...

Picked some plants...

Watched the trees...

Sat with Grandma...

Chewed our fingers...apparently they taste really good!!

And met Uncle Brandon...the main focus of our trip!

Oh, and took multiple pictures with the creepy (when approaching the house in the middle of the night) scaracrows.

Uncle Brandon, it was so nice to finally meet you! -Kaden

5 Months

2011-10-18T20:43:00.000-07:00

So, I'm a little behind on the 5 month post. It may or may not be because I had a little bit of trouble getting my sweet boy to cooperate taking pics. Apparently 5 month olds don't like to sit still to have their picture made. It's not fun! You can tell by looking at his face in the above pic...blank stare!

Also, you'll notice the cute little magnet board with "5 months" only made an appearance in a couple of pictures. That's because he was more concerned with eating it! I'm not sure how healthy it is to chew on magnets. So, we had to try a couple of different times, in a couple of different locations. Oh well...now you know a little better how it is dealing with a 5 month old all day. They're really squirmy!!

Stats:

At our last check-up, he was 15lbs 1oz and 25in long. We go back again at 6 months, so we'll have more official stats. Our last home weigh-in put him at close to 16 pounds.

Sleeping Habits:

Sleep?? What's that?? The past month has not been so great. Kaden is back to waking up once in the middle of the night. Not sure what that's about. Dr said he's probably hitting a growth spurt. My thoughts are he better grow quickly! Sometimes a simple pat or paci will work, but sometimes he actually wants to nurse. Hopefully he'll grow out of this stage quick! It doesn't really bother me too much since I get to be home with him all day and can nap if I need to. I know they're only this age once, so I try to enjoy ALL of it...the good & the not so good! :-) On a better note, he's taking longer naps now, which is nice. Before, he'd only sleep 30-45 min. Now, he'll nap for an hour or two. We can tell when he's tired cause he'll rub his eyes, bury his face (in my arm pit, neck, anywhere to hide it from light), and then his hand goes in my mouth. Not sure what that's about. I haven't figured out how me sucking his thumb or finger makes him feel better, but it does. Kids are so weird! ;-)

Eating Habits:

This has been the biggest area of change in Kaden's world. We've started baby food. At first, when we tried plain cereal, I wasn't sure how well it was going to go over, or how easy it would be. I had heard breast-fed babies are sometimes hard to introduce anything other than mommy to. But, once I started introducing fruits & veggies, he's loved it. So far we've tried carrots, green beans, sweet potatoes, apples, bananas, squash, peas & peaches. The squash and peas haven't gone over to well, but we'll keep trying! I usually feed him half a jar of fruit with cereal in the morning, half a jar of fruit/veggie with cereal in the afternoon, and a veggie with cereal at night. He's a very flexible eater. He always has been. I still nurse him at all meals as well.

New Tricks:

Kaden is quite the "talker." It's so cute to listen to him make new noises. He can tell when he's making a new noise, and he'll "practice" over & over. He's also on the move. He hasn't mastered crawling, but he uses rolling to get where he needs to go. If he sees a toy, or anything he wants, he'll roll or inchworm until he gets there. He gets his legs up under him, but he hasn't figured out how to use his arms and legs to get where he needs to go. It won't be long!

Dr. Visits:

We went to the Dr. for his 4 month check-up. He's growing right on track. Dr. says we couldn't ask for a more perfect, healthy baby. We're very blessed! We go back in 1 month for his 6 month check-up.

General Observations:

Every month I write about how he's entering the "fun stage." Well, he's there! We love this kid! He's so full of energy, and has the cutest personality. He loves to laugh. The silliest things make him laugh out loud...silly faces, silly voices...it doesn't take much. He interacts with us more. He recognizes familiar faces. He's getting to the age where is doesn't like anything that confines him...carseat, bouncy seat, bumbo. He wants to be able to move around. He's so squirmy. He likes to be held standing up, so he can jump up and down. We had music on the other night & he was jumping and dancing. He's so fun, we just can't get enough of him!

The months are flying by. Especially this time of year. I love the holiday season, but it always goes so fast. There's so much to do, and so little time! We wake up every day wondering how our little guy is going to change, what new tricks he'll do, how much bigger he'll be, or how he'll surprise us!

For a not so great "photo shoot", I couldn't pick just a few pics. With a face like this, there's too many good ones! :-)

The simplest things can be so funny!

2011-10-06T14:59:00.000-07:00

This has got to be my favorite video of Kaden so far. It beats the rolling over, the bouncing, the talking....

Watch it...you'll see what I'm talking about!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-05T10:09:00.000-07:00

Conversations with Kaden

2011-09-30T16:33:00.000-07:00

Sometimes during the day Kaden & I have deep conversations. I invite you to listen in. ;-)

I love this face!!

2011-09-30T15:36:00.000-07:00

I don't know if this is normal or not, but sometimes I like to pick up my camera & just start snapping away. With a face like this looking back at you, it's hard not to just smile!!

Did I go overboard?? Maybe!! (and this isn't even all of them! :)) But I love this face so much!!!

My 3 favorite kids!

2011-09-29T21:46:00.000-07:00

See these kiddos? They're probably my 3 favorite kids in the whole, wide world! (The littlest one definitely is!!) ;)

These are my bff Carrie's kids. I love them! Before I had my own baby, they were my babies! Unfortunately, right after K was born, Carrie & her family had to move to Dallas. I pray daily that it's a temporary move!! (hint, hint) :o) Anyway, last weekend they were down. I hadn't had a chance to get pictures of all three of our kids together.

It wasn't the best photo shoot. They aren't the most cooperative children, and it was lunch time!! But, we managed a couple. Those are two VERY handsome little boys!!

I can't wait to watch these kids grow up together!!

Fair Time

2011-09-29T21:35:00.000-07:00

It's fair time here in Fort Bend County. I'm typically not a fan of the local fair, but I haven't been in years & Micah had never been, so last Friday we decided to head out to the fair for a coupe hours just to walk around.

We took Daisy with us, and while we were there, we ran into some kids from the church. So, we hung out with them for a while.

Micah is quite the ladies man! ;)

We had to document Kaden's first trip to the county fair! I can tell you one thing, after walking around & seeing all the kids, he will NOT be hanging out there with his friends. (unless Micah & I are right behind him!!) Kids these days are scary!!

Kaden was very entertained by all the lights & sounds. I carried him in "the pouch" for several hours, and he never got fussy! He was very content.

We watched the girl ride a few rides. And laughed at them as they were screaming their heads off!!

Look how happy that sweet boy is! He loves being outside, and there was so much going on for him to watch.

As you can see, the night at the fair wore him out! He passed out as we were walking out of the fair. There was so much excitement he couldn't take it anymore.

The county fair is not one of my favorite places, but I did have fun with our little family & the kiddos we hung out with! I think it'll be fun to take Kaden when he's a little older to see the animals & ride some of the kiddy rides!

Play Time

2011-09-21T13:20:00.000-07:00

Kaden is getting to a really fun age. He's starting to really interact with the world around him. He responds to faces & familiar voices. He plays with toys. He's on the move. He rolls to get where he wants to go. I put him under his play mat the other day, and turned my back for a minute. When I looked back he was about 3 feet away from his mat. He's not crawling, but he just rolls. It won't be long before we have a crawler on our hands. Anyway, he's figured out how to make himself bounce/rock. By kicking his feet, he can make his bouncy set bounce or his car seat rock. It's so funny to watch him. He's so intense. This video doesn't do it justice, but I love to watch him when he starts kicking away.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-21T11:36:00.001-07:00

1st Foods

2011-09-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

Last week we went to Kaden's 4 month appt. Dr. gave us the go ahead to start baby food. We started with plain rice cereal. Kaden was NOT a fan! I can't say that I blame him. Not only was he not use to the texture, but the cereal doesn't have much flavor.

We tried plain cereal for a few days, and then started with foods. We've experimented with apples, carrots & green beans. So far he likes all of them!

As you can see from the pics, when we first started, he got more on his face, bib & hands than in his mouth. But, he's doing much better now. Before he couldn't figure out what to do with his tongue. He would stick it out, and out would come the food. But, he's getting the hang of it now.

Eating is messy, but it's so much fun! It's fun to watch him make all the silly faces when he tastes something new & when he's trying hard to figure out this new eating thing.

I can't believe we are already in this new stage of Kaden's life! He's growing so quickly!!

We love our little man and the new stage of life we're in with him. It's been so fun watching him grow!!

4 Months

2011-09-15T14:36:00.000-07:00

Look at my handsome 4 month old!! Can you believe how big he is getting?!?

Stats: As of Monday's check-up, he's 15lbs 1oz and 25in long. He's in the 50th percentile for his weight & length and the 75th percentile for his head. Ok, so he has a slightly big head (inherited from his father). All that means is he's going to be extra smart!!

Sleeping Habits: Kaden has been sleeping through the night for a while now. Shortly after he turned 3 months, we moved him from the pack-n-play in our room to his crib in his room. He adjusted just fine, however I had a harder time. I woke up for several nights to go check on him. Paranoid?...maybe!!

Eating Habits: Still nursing exclusively. He eats every 3-4 hours. Sometimes I can stretch him 5. At his 4 month appt, his doctor gave us the ok to start food. We've tried cereal, and he wasn't a big fan. I gave him applesauce and he did a little better. I think he's still getting use to the spoon & texture.

New Tricks: He's found his hands & toes, and he LOVES them. They're his new favorite toys!! He learned to roll from his back to his front. It took him lots of practice, but he finally got it. He's little smiles have turned into full fledge giggles. That's my new favorite trick!!

Dr. Visits: We went to the Dr. for his 4 month check-up. He's growing right on track. Dr. says we couldn't ask for a more perfect, healthy baby. We're very blessed! We go back in 2 months for his 6 month check-up.

General Observations: We've always had fun with our little guy, but I do believe he's entering into that really fun age! He's interacting more. He laughs out loud. He reaches out to try to grab things, and does hold them if he can get his hands on them. He laughs at silly faces. He plays with his hands. He tries to put his feet in his mouth. I think he's discovered his tongue and spitting.

Look at that smile! LOVE IT!!!

Roomie Reunion

2011-09-08T20:34:00.000-07:00

Labor Day weekend we headed to College Station for Micah's annual Roommate Reunion. This is our 3rd year to spend a night in CS with Micah's college roommates. We always watch an Aggie Football game, and then head to our friend Paul's farm to stay the night.

This was Kaden's first Aggie football game. (We're trying to brainwash him early!). I wasn't sure how he was going to do, but I was pretty impressed. He made it through the 1st half perfectly. Around half time, he started to get a little restless. I can't say that I blame him. The 1st quarter was so long, and we were packed in like sardines!!

At half time, him and I walked down to get some fresh air and stretch out. We found a bench to sit on, and he was perfectly content. The second half went a lot faster! We were so proud of our little Aggie this weekend! We can't wait to train him up the Aggie way!

It's been fun to see how our group has changed each year. First there were few spouses, and more fiances. Now we're almost all married, and there's 2 babies (only 1 made the pic.) Next year, there will be 4 babies. I wish we would have started the group picture sooner. But, I think it'll be fun to see how our group grows over the years!

4 Months

2011-09-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

Kaden is 4 months old today. He continues to grow before our very eyes. We're going to the dr on Monday morning, so I'm going to save the official 4 month post for Monday morning. I just wanted everyone to be able to enjoy this smile!!

Love this face!

2011-09-01T16:36:00.000-07:00

OK, that first one just makes me smile. I like to try to imagine what he's thinking. Probably something like, "why does my mom have that dumb camera out again??" But, can you blame me? I just love this face!!

When I look at him, I don't even think of the all the misery & pain I went through for 9 months. It's amazing how quickly you forget that part & fall in love. We thank God every day for him!!!

What are these??

2011-08-29T15:20:00.000-07:00

Kaden has discovered his toes. I think they're his new favorite toy! I love to watch him try to pull his socks off or try to stick his toes in his mouth.

I LOVE (ok, maybe I'm even obsessed) with his chubby little hands & feet!

New Toy

2011-08-29T15:04:00.000-07:00

Kaden got a new toy. I know it might be kinda early, but I wanted to find a way to help strengthen his upper body, so we bought a jumper. He loves to be "stood up," and he loves to be able to look around and see things, so I thought he'd enjoy this.

Can't you just see the anticipation in his face. He sat patiently while mom read the instructions, and put the toy together.

Yes, those are the "tools" I used to put this sucker together. Maybe not the safest options, but they worked.

This is phase one complete. It's probably best that the only other person in the house at the time of assembly was Kaden. I'm sure the pics of me trying to wrestle the bungee chords on this thing to attach them would have been priceless, to say the least. I'm pretty sure I used every muscle in my body.

Phase 2, the seat, complete.

All the pieces assembled, and put into place. It's only missing one thing!

There he is. I don't think he knew what was going on. There was so much to look at and see. So many noises and lights.

And you can see his feet don't quite touch the ground, but they'll be there before we know it!

I think he likes it! He's sat in it quite a bit. We have to use a towel or blanket behind his back cause the seat is so big, but it won't be long before he fits perfectly!

**I decided after this that all future toys will be assembled by daddy!!!**

Rolling video

2011-08-23T21:39:00.000-07:00

OK, I think I got the video to upload. You have to watch a minute or so before the actual roll occurs.

But ...it does happen! I love how he smiles like he's so proud of himself once he gets on to his tummy! :)

My boy is growing too fast!!

Rolling Over

2011-08-23T20:30:00.000-07:00

I posted a while back that Kaden was so close to rolling over. Last week, he accomplished rolling from his back to his tummy for the first time. And....I got it all on video. So I promised the grandparents it'd go on the blog. Unfortunately, I've had this post written for several days, but I'm having trouble getting the video to upload. I'll keep trying. Here's pics in the meantime.

1st Beach Trip

2011-08-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

This past weekend our church ladies went to Galveston for a retreat with another church. We had a great time!! Since I'm Kaden's food source, and just not ready to be away from him yet, he went with us. He was PERFECT the whole time. Several ladies commented that they never knew a baby was there. He was the only boy there, so he got LOTS of attention.

During our free time we walked across the street to the beach. It was Kaden's first time to the beach. Grammy couldn't wait to get him there!

Obviously he didn't "know" he was at the beach, but he didn't mind the water. Just like bath time & pool time.

We didn't stay out for too long, but we had fun introducing Kaden to the water.

He looks like he's not quite sure what to think about it.

But he sure is a happy boy!!

We had fun seeing and hanging out with Aunt Carrie!

If mom & Grammy get their wish, we'll be hanging out at the beach a lot more!!

I love this baby so much, and had so much fun with him this weekend! I was so proud of him, and loved showing him off to everyone!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-17T12:52:00.000-07:00

Dedication

2011-08-17T12:47:00.000-07:00

¹³ "For you created my inmost being;
   you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
   your works are wonderful,
   I know that full well."

Psalms 139:13-14

This past Sunday we dedicated Kaden. It was a great ceremony. Mom sang her dedication special, "Masterpiece", and we had a slide show playing while she sang.

Unfortunately, Grandparents, Great-Grandparents & all were up with us, so we didn't get many photos.

And we took off so quick after church to get lunch ready for everyone, we didn't even get a family picture.

But, pictures or not, we had a great time. We are so blessed to have Kaden, and thank God every day for choosing us to be his parents.

My Little Water Baby

2011-08-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

We hit the pool again today. Grammy goes back to work on Monday, so she wanted to make sure we went swimming one more time before she had to go back to work.

As usual, Kaden enjoyed his time in the sun. It didn't take him long before he was sleeping in his floaty.

But first he had to pose for some pictures. Can you tell how thrilled he is? I'm pretty sure he was thinking, "mom, can you put my shade on and let me sleep already?"

But, we had to get some pictures with Grammy & Aunt Daisy. No pool time would be complete without them.

Then we stuck him under the shade and let him be. He was pretty content the whole time.

He even sat with Grammy on her raft for a while. But we didn't let him enjoy the ride for too long. It was very hot, and the sun was very bright. Even though he was covered with plenty of sunscreen, I didn't want him out from under his shade for too long.

Today may have been the last pool visit this summer with Grammy & Aunt Daisy. We may squeeze one or two more visits in, but if not, we made today count!!

Projects around the House

2011-08-10T14:57:00.000-07:00

You see that smile? It's a nervous smile because Micah was on his way to Home Depot...with Kaden. Their first outing without mommy. Micah was going to get paint because I had been asking, ok harassing, him to paint the entry and dining area.

So after all the supplies were bought, he went to work.

I don't have a finished pic yet, I need to get everything back in place and on the walls. But, I really appreciate him doing it! I have the best hubby!!!

3 Months

2011-08-10T14:03:00.000-07:00

Stats: We don't go back to the Dr. until 4 months, but our unofficial home weigh in had him just over 13 pounds, and right at 24 inches.

Sleeping Habits? He's officially sleeping through the night. At 10 weeks old he began sleeping all night. He goes anywhere from 8-10 hours at night. Sometimes, he wakes up and I can just stick his pacifier in his mouth. He usually wakes up anywhere from 8-10 in the morning.

Eating Habits? He usually eats every 4 hours. If we're out running errands, he'll go longer. But, I try not to make him wait too long. Dr. said we'll discuss starting baby food at his 4 month check-up.

New tricks? He is all smiles, and now he's starting to giggle a little when he's tickled or mommy makes really silly faces. I think he's starting to discover his voice. He'll make noises like he's trying to talk. He's so cute cause you can tell he surprises himself when he makes a noise sometimes. He's very strong, and can just about hold his head up without help. He's so close to rolling over. I think it'll be any day! He's starting to enjoy his toys more. He's starting to try to reach for toys. He'll grab them if I put them in his ands. He's a thumb (and finger sucker). His hands are always in his mouth.

Doctor Visits? Not again until 4 months.

General Observations? The fussiness that started in the evenings around week 6 is starting to fade. He's getting better about not having to be with mommy only. He's a growing boy. We've put away the 0-3 pajamas, and brought out the 3-6 months. He can still fit some 0-3 outfits, but he's in mostly 3 months. We're well on our way to 3-6 months. We introduced him to the pool. He loves it as much as bath time!!

We're loving watching our little man grow!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-10T10:16:00.000-07:00

Cool Dude!

2011-08-05T22:36:00.000-07:00

Today around 5 pm, Kaden started getting fussy. He's been doing a lot better in the evenings, but he was starting to get fussy this afternoon. Our friend Stacey is in from Oklahoma for the weekend, and we had been talking about going to the pool all day. I know how much Kaden enjoys the pool, so we decided to load up and walk over. Like always, it did the trick. He was a little fussy when we first got there, and took about a 10 min. power nap. After that, we hung out in the pool and he was perfectly content. I love my little water baby!!

Attempting to roll over

2011-08-01T23:27:00.000-07:00

Kaden has been trying so hard to roll over the past few days. He'll get so close, but his arm gets in the way. He hasn't been quite strong enough to get all the way over. This morning he laid on his play mat for 20-30 min. The whole time he was trying to roll over. I caught a few minutes on video. He's so cute to watch. I'm sure he'll get it in the next couple of weeks.

Water Baby

2011-08-01T23:18:00.000-07:00

Kaden LOVES the water! Bath time & swimming!

I think it's both of our favorite time of the day! He loves taking a bath, and I love watching him enjoy it so much!

Look at those big smiles while he takes a bath.

As you can see from the pics, getting out is not his favorite, but he's still so darn cute in his hooded towels!