Evan at 3 months

Eventually I WILL get better about posting more often.  :)  I meant to post these pictures awhile ago as Evan is now 4 1/2 months old.  It is unbelievable how fast he is growing up. He is so alert and aware of his surroundings.  Evan is also very social and loves to look at faces.  He is now able to roll from back to front and hasn't stopped moving since!  He is very strong as well.  I am fairly certain that he won't waste too much time crawling and will go straight to walking like his brother did.   Connor is still an amazing big brother.  He loves to be my helper as well as shower Evan with kisses.  I feel very very blessed!

How many pacifiers can fit in one mouth?!

Connor was sooo close to being weened off of the pacifier prior to Evan being born.  However, once Evan came, he regressed and began wanting the pacifier more than ever.  Only he doesn't go for just one, he goes for as many as he can find.  So far he has managed to fit 3 in his mouth at once...luckily he doesn't try that too often!  We also find pacifiers hidden all over the family room that Connor has stashed away.  The thing that amazes me is that he is very willing to share his guilty pleasure. He offers his pacifier to me, Daddy, Evan and pretty much every stuffed animal he owns.  I am so impressed by his generosity!;) I have decided not to worry about Connor's "habit" just yet.  After all, he sees Evan with one and has had a lot of transitions to deal with.  Besides, if I were to take all of his pacifiers...he'd just take Evan's. :)

Farewell 2011!

Wow, it's been a while since I have been able to update our blog...but there is a good reason for it!  We have been busy with a newborn.  Evan Jeffrey was born on November 14th via c-section.  He weighed 8 lbs, 10 oz and was 19 inches tall (although I think the measurement was totally inaccurate because a few weeks later he was 22 inches tall).  Although I was disappointed that I had to have a c-section, everything went very smoothly and I healed quite quickly.  It's hard to believe that Evan is already 6 weeks old.  He's had some trouble with his feedings, but other than that he has adjusted really well.  We just love him to pieces!  Connor has done amazingly well adjusting to all of the changes that come with a new baby.  He has become my little helper and makes sure that Evan gets plenty of love by showering him with kisses.  

Overall, 2011 has been a really good year for us with the exception of losing my grandmother last January.  I can't believe it's almost been a year.  I think about her all the time and just know she is in Heaven watching over us.  Since last January, Brian continues to excel at and really enjoy his job at TripIt.  He was just recently moved into the role of "Lead Software Architect".  The boys and I are so proud of his accomplishments.  I am staying plenty busy with my church choir job, voice lessons, mom groups and well...just being a mom to two boys.  Connor is getting to the age where he really notices other children and enjoys interacting with them.  He is also very vocal and can say about 20 words now.   I just know he is going to be talking my ear off before long.  Evan spends most of his time eating, sleeping and just being cute. :)

In November, my brother Peter married Terah Gardner in Tacoma, WA.  Unfortunately, we were unable to make the wedding since it was right around my due date.  However, Terah's brother-in-law was so nice to set me up on Skype so that I could watch the entire ceremony.  It was the next best thing to actually being there.  I am so excited to have Terah as a sister-in-law.  She and Peter really complement each other and she is so easy to be around.  Welcome to the family Terah!

I realize this blog sounds more like a letter that would be sent with a Christmas card...but I meant to do that.  I figured this would be a great way to wrap up 2011.  Just writing this post reminds me how truly blessed we are and that we have so much to be thankful for.  I hope that everyone has a fun and safe New Years!  Love to you all.  XO

Smith Family Farm visit

On Saturday, we went to Smith Family Farm with our friends The Solomon's to pick out some pumpkins.  Connor had a lot of fun hanging out with his buddy Grace and even got to participate in his first hoedown!  I had such a proud mama moment when Connor got to play the maracas to "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain".  The farm also had a lot of animals out and about which Connor enjoyed seeing, although I think the dog was his favorite.  Other than the hot weather, we all had a great time and can't wait to do it again next year!

Maternity Photos

A few weeks ago I had some maternity photos taken by photographer Bridget Homer (www.kissesofsunshinephotography.com).  This is the first time we have used her, but we absolutely love the moments she was able to capture.  Connor, of course, was the star of the show!  Enjoy!

Connor's first pair of "big boy" shoes

Last week Connor and I made a visit to Stride Rite to find him a pair of tennis shoes.   His baby shoes just weren't working anymore, he put too many miles on them.  Finding Connor shoes has always been frustrating for me because he has the chubbiest little feet.  It is so hard to find a pair that fits well.  I was so excited when I found out that Stride Rite carries wide children's shoes.

Connor was very excited about all the different shoes he got to try on but kept going back to the same pair.  The sales lady wanted to see how he could move in them so she put the shoes on Connor hoping he might take a walk around the store.  Nope!  Instead he sprinted into the mall.  I had to chase after him (an 8 month pregnant lady running = hilarious).  I knew that these must be the right shoes for him since he was able to move with such ease and balance.  Oh and it turns out that wide shoes don't work for him after all...we had to get "extra wide". I didn't even know that they made shoes in extra wide!

These shoes have since become one of his favorite things. Connor is constantly bringing us his new shoes so that we can put them on him.  Here are some pictures of Connor in his big boy shoes...

3D Ultrasound

We decided that we wanted to do something different for this baby that we didn't do with Connor so we decided to try out the 3D ultrasound.  We actually had two separate visits and still didn't get all of the pictures we were supposed to so we will be going back for a third.  On our first visit, the baby was fast asleep and very unwilling to move for us.  His legs and arms were completely covering his face so we weren't able to see much....except for his nice long legs.  We went back a few days later and he was much more willing to cooperate.  It was so fascinating to watch him move around and do little things like yawn, open his eyes, wave, etc.  He already appears to be a very snuggly baby.  The entire time he was snuggling up to his legs, hands and the placenta of all things.  He's also got some great chubby cheeks happening.  From the photos, I see a lot of resemblance to Connor's baby pics but I guess we won't really know until the baby is born.  Only 10 more weeks!!:)