Bear At 4 Months

It is hard to believe that you are four months old already, Bear. For the most part you are a very chill baby. Up until a few weeks ago you HATED car rides and would cry almost the entire time we were in the car. I think you are finally getting used to the car and for the most part you are calm. You don't cry very much, usually it's if your tired, hungry or have a dirty diaper-- you know, the normal baby stuff.

Our photos started like this.

At four months old you are wearing size two diapers and twelve month clothes. Yep, you read that right twelve month clothes.

A darling Bubba wanted his photos taken too.

Sleep is hit and miss right now.

And then this happened...

You can roll on to your side, you have a great laugh and have recently discovered your hands and feet. You like to put your hands and feet in your mouth.

So we took some more photos without the belly badge.

To celebrate reaching four months old, we tried feeding you peas. You liked the peas you just weren't sure what to do with a spoon in your month.

We love you so much Bear and are glad you're part of our family!

A Field Trip To The Fire Station

Bubba currently loves all things trucks, tractors, cars and 4-wheelers. A few weeks ago I picked up a couple of books for him at a local consignment sale. One book is about trucks and the other book is about fire trucks and it has flaps that you can lift. We have read those two books nearly everyday, multiple times a day since I brought them home.

Recently my friend Jodie, who is a fire fighter at one of the nearby fire stations, suggested that I bring Bubba down to the fire station to see the fire trucks. I jumped at the invitation and today we went to the fire station.

When I was a little girl my grandpa worked as a fire fighter. When we would go visit my grandparents we would often make a special trip to the fire station to visit Grandpa. I have fond memories of touring the fire stations, climbing in the fire trucks, turning on the lights and sirens and honking the horn. Words can't explain how excited I was for Bubba to see a fire truck up close.

All morning I kept telling Bubba that we were going to go see fire trucks, but I'm not sure that he understood what I meant. When we arrived at the fire station he became shy and buried his face in between my butt cheeks-- I'm not sure why he does that, but he does.

Jodie took us out to see the fire trucks. Bubba refused to touch or put on her helmet. After a little coaxing I was able to get him to stand inside one of the trucks. And then he found an orange cone and that cone was the focus of his attention most of our visit.

Several of the other fire fighters came out to say hi. They showed Bubba the different compartments on the outside of the trucks, he enjoyed looking inside each one. They even put their masks on for him and he didn't bat an eye.

We'll have to take him back to the fire station again when he is a little older. I'm crossing my fingers that he will enjoy it more as he gets older. Thanks for letting us come and visit Jodie!

While Bubba was down for his nap today Bear was awake. I couldn't help but snap some photos of him. Enjoy!

Cute little baby feet! I love his little grin in this photo!

I really feel blessed to have these two sweet little boys in my life.

Bear's Baby Blessing

Bear was blessed this past Sunday at church by Andy. I love hearing the blessings pronounced upon my children's heads by their father and to glean a little bit about what our Father in Heaven has in store for them. I feel truly honored and blessed that Heavenly Father would entrust these special spirits to me. It is a privilege and a joy to be a mother.

When Andy blesses our children I try to record the audio, so I can type up the blessing for a boys so read when they are older. This time was no exception. The sound didn't record very well, so I am hoping I can decipher it.

Bear wore the same white outfit that Bubba did. He looked so cute! Andy took Bear up front and those we invited to participate (Andy, my father, Uncle Jared, cousin Cooper, Andy's father, Andy's grandfather, our good friend Kent and Dan and Brian a member of our bishopric) formed a circle around Bear while Andy pronounced the blessing. The spirit was very strong in that room.

The one thing that really stood out to both Andy and I was that Bear would be a peacemaker in our family. I also took note of the word "siblings", apparently we aren't done having kids yet.

As soon as the blessing was over, Andy sat down next to me and Bubba with Bear. A moment later Andy asked me if I wanted to change Bear's diaper, I was a little confused by this as I had just changed Bear's diaper before the blessing. Andy told me he had let out some really loud farts.

I took Bear to the mother's room to change his diaper and feed him. I was shocked by what I found-- the biggest blowout I have ever seen in my life. Poop was everywhere. His white blessing outfit was all kinds of poop yellow. It took awhile to get him changed.

When I went back into the chapel people looked at me a little funny. I later learned that people nearby could hear Bear when he pooped, not sure why I didn't hear it.

After the Sacrament Meeting was over, we went outside and took some family pictures and then went home for lunch.

Me, Bubba, Bear & Andy.

Me, Bear, Papa, Bubba, Nana & Uncle Nathan.

My side of the family: Nana, Me, Papa, Bear, Andy, Uncle Nathan, Bubba, Aunt Kimberly, Uncle Jared, Cousins: Emma, Samuel, Cooper & Natalie.

Andy's side: Bear, Andy, Grandpa, Great Grandpa, Bubba & Uncle Shaun.

Andy's side of the family: Me, Bear, Andy, Grandpa, Grandma, Great Grandma, Great Grandpa, Aunt Ilene, Cousins: Aaron, Lynn, Ethan, Bubba &Uncle Shaun.

Grandma with Bear & Cousin Lynn.

I'm really grateful that so many of our family members were willing and able to make the trip out for the Bear's blessing. It meant a lot to have them here.

These photos were taken after I cleaned all the yellow poop out of the blessing outfit. Honestly, I can't believe I was able to get it all out.

An Update On Life

I sat down to work on my blog for a little bit tonight and realized that it has been awhile since I have sat down to really write. Life with two littles in very busy and I'm struggling to find a balance between being a full time wife and mother and taking some time for myself. I hoping in time that that balance will be restored.

I think it is safe to say that I have made it through the Postpartum Depression. I feel like myself and I am grateful that that chapter is over. I am currently going though physical therapy to address some of the issues that come with pregnancy/labor and delivery. I am not cleared to exercise beyond riding a stationary bicycle, this has been hard for me. I have some fitness goals that I would really like to tackle but they are on hold for the time being.

Andy is as busy as ever. He works 40+ hours a week at work. When he is not at work, Young Men's or helping with the boys he can often be found working on starting up his own company. His free time is next to none.

Bubba's vocabulary has taken off lately. He is learning lots of new words. We recently started helping him say prayers. He loves Jesus and enjoys going to Nursery at church. He loves all things chocolate. He likes watching Daniel Tiger and carrying around his Daniel Tiger toys. He loves trucks. He has taken a liking to coloring. I bought him some special markers that only color on special paper (so he can't color everything in the house). He will color on each page of his coloring book say, "All done", close the book, flip to the beginning and start all over again-- he will do this for hours. He won't let anybody else color with him either. It makes my Mommy heart happy to see him color. He is a fabulous big brother and is always looking out for Bear.

Bear is growing bigger each and every day. He loves when we interact with him. He enjoys his swing, kicking his legs and his stuffed hippo. He also enjoys sucking on his hands. I am grateful for his calm disposition. It feels like he has been apart of our family for ever. Our family wouldn't be complete without him.

Bear At 3 Months

It's hard to believe it has been three months already! Time is passing by far too quickly for my liking. My babies are growing up and it makes me kinda sad.

At three months old Bear weighs 13 pounds and 8 ounces. He currently wears size 2 diapers and 3-6 month clothes.

Bear is a pretty chill baby most of the time. He lets you know though when he has a dirty diaper, burp or is ready for a nap. He is usually a pretty good napper. Sleep is hit and miss though at night.

Bear loves to look in the mirror, at lights and the ceiling fan. He enjoys laying on his changing pad and kicking his legs-- his changing pad is his safe place.

He enjoys being strapped to my chest and going on walks. Car rides are a different story, he hates them.

He recently made his first visit to the Emergency Room but that is a story for another day.

And you can't take photos of Bear without getting a few of Bubba.

Check out Bubba's black eye.