Family Pictures

A great family friend of ours, Renee Manning, took some pictures for us this past weekend- she has an amazing eye- I wasn't sure it was possible to get the three of us hooligans to look good for pictures but she pulled it off! Thank you so much Renee!

He was getting tired!

This is such a beautiful picture of my perfect little boy!

The Good, The Bad, and The Extremely Ugly

Everyone familiar with the phrase..."And just when I thought it couldn't get any worse..." ok so I'm sure that phrase has come back to bite us all a time or two- in fact I think that we should automatically assume, oh yes it can always get worse- otherwise we are unnecessarily alarmed and horrified. Well I have realized little by little, beginning with a newborn crash-course, just how unpredictable infant bodily functions can be- so yes this is going to be a poop story blog- if given a family rating it would be PG-13 because you definitely have to be a mature audience to appreciate the content...but we'll get to that part later, so without further adieu...may I present our feature film totally Hegstrom style....

THE GOOD

We have a healthy happy 4-month-old baby weighing in at...drumroll please
a solid 16 lbs   (70th percentile)

and measuring in at
25 1/2 inches long (70th percentile)

*At four months old he has now moved up to size 3 diapers- granted they are still a little big on him as he is at
  the bottom recommended weight for that size. And is fitting very well in 3-6 month clothes and some 6-9
*He still loves to shower, but is now finally enjoying baths, especially sink baths- he's learned how to splash
  and thinks it's hysterical
*He laughs out loud a lot and makes tons of silly faces- I think he got his Dad's personality (hopefully his 
  mothers temperament :)
*He likes to read books, and yes I mean he reads them- if I am reading he constantly interrupts me with his 
  jabber and it sounds like he knows exactly what the book says and that's he's the one reading it to me!

*He sleeps 8-10 hours EVERY NIGHT!!!

Basically he keeps us on our toes but we love him to death and are grateful for him every day- especially when we wake up in the morning after a full-nights rest!

THE BAD

*He has tried rice cereal...and he did not like it...it's a work in progress and I think he was offended that I would try to feed him something that tastes like mommy's milk through a spoon- I mean what kind of mother does that right? ;)
* He doesn't like other babies...especially when his mom or dad are holding them...

...can you tell?

AND THE EXTREMELY UGLY

So you know those moments when you are cuddling your adorable little baby and adoring every inch of their perfect little bodies, then you hear the rumbling down below, followed by a huge cheesy smile, followed by...well you know...that sound, and you know instantly that's it's gonna be bad and you pray silently that the poor diaper holds strong...do you know which moment I mean? Well Tuesday I had one of those, only due to a culmination of highly unfortunate events it didn't end well for me...firstly, my sons bowels function almost too well, secondly he's at an awkward diaper size phase so 2's are too small and 3's drown him, and thirdly I waited a split second too long, although I don't know if it would have helped...all I know is that in that fateful moment of praying for the diaper and then the feeling of warmth on my stomach(where his little bottom was resting against me, and then the warmth traveling- I knew that things had just gotten worse- in fact maxed out- and before I could do anything there was a mustard puddle in my lap- now I didn't know what to do- if I sat there it would soak down into all my layers, if I got up it would be on the floor- I surveyed the scene and discovered a perfectly innocent spit rag- the only thing within reaching distance and as I grabbed it from the other side of the couch I prayed for it's forgiveness as I mopped up my lap so that I could begin the recovery process. Upon standing I realized that among the casualties were: everything he was wearing (naturally)- down to his sock, unfortunately everything I was wearing, and really unfortunately the nursing pillow and the couch...in immediate frustration I wanted to curse at his diaper- I am pretty sure in the heat of the moment the darn thing just said to itself, "Forget this, I am not going down this way" because it looked as though the poo had dodged the diaper entirely, I mean he would've been just as well off without a diaper. So the Kirkland diapers get an F for effort and they are currently on my hit list...anyway- I proceeded to waddle my son back to the bathroom sink where I balanced him while I stripped off my poo-stained clothing and then proceeded to peel off his- unfortunately for his perfectly nice head- there was no way to get his clothing off without giving him a poo streak through his hair- so we proceeded (and oh it was horrifying) and then came the fateful moment where I thought to myself, "this couldn't possibly get any worse" and then he did it- massive projectile vomit all over us both, followed by some of his happiest, poop and spit-covered naked smiles, an immediate bath- and due to lots of calm breathing, no cursing- it just wasn't worth it!

Viewer discretion advised on the following picture...

OH THE HORROR!!!! This doesn't even begin to show it!

So I guess this is the life of a mother- no one to hold my hand and tell me that this happens all the time,  no one to pat my back and congratulate me on my amazing execution of the cleanup, but the most adorable someone to flap wildly and smile at me while continuing to fling poop around- and yes, I suppose that's all the thanks I needed- and you know what? I'm pretty sure life doesn't get much more rewarding than that! I love my little boy!

Father and Son

I do take an excessive amount of pictures, but some things would be a sin to not be caught on camera...the other day I was doing who knows what and the two boys were in the living room bonding...the scene I came across was hysterical- apparently my little boy is a TV junky and a drunk...a milk drunk that is...

Pretty funny already...

Now a little closer...and a little funnier

Apparently a boy is never too young to take after his father...

Not sure at that angle how he can see the TV over his milk belly

He's pretty serious about the show

Well there you have it..now the thing is- I know that men bond in different ways than women so the fact that he is propped up watching TV with his Dad was no shocker but I just had one question for David...why on earth are his jammies unbuttoned down to his diaper...the response..."We were just playing with his belly button" The whole thing was a crack-up what can I say I have two funny boys!

How Sweet it is....

     I have come to the conclusion that having people to love, and them loving you in return gives life its savor. Growing up in a loving family you sort of naturally fall into this love and it's wonderful and beautiful, but the love you experience in the family that you and your spouse create together is something entirely different. The love David and I share is something that we try to work at every day and I can honestly say that MAN we are in love and it only gets better and better, and as we have enjoyed this little boy, this perfect little creation our love has deepened and expanded in a way I could never have understood before. I honestly didn't know I could love my husband any more and had no idea what it was to love a child. It takes everything out of you but gives you everything in return- it makes you work so hard for the simplest little achievements but leaves you completely fulfilled once they are reached. I feel so complete and so at home wherever I am with my husband and my little boy and I never knew I would feel that way especially since we move around so much, but it's true.
     As David and I were coming back to our little apartment here in Boise after having visited family we were discussing how nice it was to have visited but how nice it was to be "just us" again and how complete we felt as a family- just the three of us. In the car on that drive home, it hit me exactly why it is that having this little boy makes us our own separate unit- this little Ethan is the first and only thing that we are not combining from his family or mine- but from just David and I. He has no prior traditions, experiences or memories outside of what we will create together. This little boy, our very own little boy- is just that- OURS, and though I know that he is only on loan from our Father in Heaven- and has divine parts from Him, he also has parts of his daddy and mommy- he is a product of our love and devotion to each other, and he completes us. I know why I can't get enough of him and why I am completely in utter adoration of his sweet little face and his double chin and every single chunky roll on his thighs and arms and that absolutely adorable gummy toothless smile- when I look at him, I see David's love for me, and God's love for me. You can't beat that feeling- so you just soak it up and thank Him every day for it. You live your life in such a way that you show your gratitude, and when you have kept it enough between you and your Heavenly Father- then you post it all over like I'm about to do so that everyone else knows. I LOVE love LOVE my husband and sweet baby boy...

I LOVE him when he's naked because I can count every little fat roll...

               I love him when he's only mostly naked because I can still count almost every fat roll without the fear of a sneak attack from the super soaker- if you know what I mean

I love love love these chubby cheeks, just look at them!

I love how content he is in the shower!

I love how much he loves his Daddy...

And talks to his daddy

And plays with his daddy

And goofs around with his daddy- my two favorite boys!

I love his first morning stretch when he sticks out his little booty!

And last but not least, I love all the silly faces he makes because I know that in his own way he is showing his love for me

Such a pitiful pouter!

His eyes say..."Mommy I've been waiting patiently for you..."

Hello my name is Ethan...

So for those who have never seen our little guy or for those who have seen him and just can't get enough of him...like myself, David, grandparents, and friend stalkers (for those friends -it's totally ok if you think my baby is absolutely adorable- I know I do) here is a little get to know you session with him at 13 weeks old...

Likes...

Being naked (as naked as my parents will allow)

being mostly naked and looking at my favorite person in the whole world...MOM!

BUMBO!!!!!!

My sweet new musical toy...now that I can sit up in my bumbo and actually SEE it!

Naps with my Pa

My middle finger....(sorry guys but it's funny right?) (he does this all the time...Anger issues?)

SMILING...especially since my smile makes my mom smile!

My giraffe and being in my swing looking at my giraffe!

DISLIKES....

GAS TROUBLES!!! (and yes I have them!)

But then my mom does "Gassersizes" and life is good again!

So I guess at 3 months old you could say we have a pretty good...no a GREAT little guy. Our little "bean" He finally seems to be through the super fussy stage, he still has his moments and he still has some tummy troubles- but he sure is a smiley little guy- sadly we have trouble catching his smile on camera because there is always too much movement when he's smiling to actually catch a picture, but we love his energy and I love how much he adores me...this kid loves his momma! I could post a million pictures of him, but I guess I'll leave it at this for now...enjoy and feel free to boost my ego by telling me how adorable this little kid is!