Rock a Bye

Sometimes there are moments when you take mental pictures, and you wish so badly that you could somehow print them out. But you can't, so all you can do is hope you'll always have that picture in your mind and remember it forever and ever.

Since we've gotten Lincoln to sleep on his own in his own room, the only way he can fall asleep is by laying him down and he just self-soothes himself to sleep. Don't get me wrong, this is wonderful, and we have been different (by different, I mean people who get sleep) people ever since he started doing this. But, as some moms might know, once babies get to that point, trying to rock them to sleep doesn't really work anymore. At least for me it doesn't. Every once in a while I just wish SO badly that he'll just let me rock him, or hold him without trying to squirm or jump out of my arms using his new-found strength (and it's STRONG, believe me) so we can have a moment together.

Tonight was one of those moments, as I actually got to rock my baby to sleep. Staring at that sweet little face reminded me of so many things in his short 10 month life so far. I was reminded of when we were in the hospital, and we tried SO hard not to hold him "too much" for fear that he'd never sleep on his own. But we just couldn't help ourselves. Can you really, though? With your first precious baby? Maybe we did pay for it later, though because I was also reminded of the nights I spent on the couch just holding him while he slept. And let me tell you, that was rough. But it was in those long, tired hours that I also got to study my sweet baby's newborn face and try to lock in that mental picture. How fast those newborn moments fly by. Well, let me say, looking back how fast those newborn moments fly by. I know that during those first few weeks, you feel like you haven't slept in years and will never sleep again. But fly they do, and it's right before your eyes.

And while I feel like these times might be creeping by slowly (being at home all day, just us two while Lorne is at work or school) , I realize how fast time really does go. So to get a moment like I did tonight was priceless, for lack of a better word. I'm sure when he's 18 months i'll be staring at his sweet sleeping face and be reminded of the time he let my rock him to sleep when it'd been such a long time since I had.

Cherish each moment. They're all so precious, but so fleeting.

Some may call me overly-sentimental, but I embrace it! How I want to remember all these precious little moments!

My Boy Wonder: 6 months old?!

Uh, Gosh. I know. It's been two months! I told myself that i'd be so good on keeping this blog up, since it's really the only way i'm tracking baby's progress. I should journal more, I guess. But who knows! I'd probably neglect that, too. So better to neglect one form of writing rather than two. I just know i'll be kicking myself when he's five years old and I can't remember what his first word was... SO, this is what we've been up to.

Lincoln is 6 months and 3 weeks old now. He'll be 7 months old on October 11th. tell. me. where. the. time. has. gone. please. Holy cow, I can't even believe how big he's getting. Right now Lincoln:

• is 17 lbs 15 ounces
• in the 50th percentile for height and weight- my little average guy.
• Loves new faces and places. But mostly new faces.
• Is rollin' all over the place.
• Sits up on his own.
• Will TAKE STEPS when I stand him up. My Mom keeps telling me to quit letting him do that. But it's so fun to see him progress!
• Can stand up on his own when he's leaning against something.
• Is ticklish! 
• Eats about 7-8 ounces per feeding.
• Eats cereal like it's the only thing he's eaten in days.
• Hates green beans.
• Doesn't love peas.
• Or carrots.
• I'd better work on that.
• Is getting to know his name.
• Wears 6-9 month clothes.
• Wears size 3 diapers.
• Sleeps in his OWN crib- success! 
• Loves to watch Curious George. I'm not kidding. Here is some evidence:

See that focus? For some reason it makes sense to hold your arms out from your body when you're feeling intense about something. Don't worry. We limit his Curious George time. But, man. It's nice to have that in case I need him stay in one spot for a little bit. 

This kid is going places. At least when he's not watching Curious George. 

He's a good boy. Just the happiest little guy you ever did see. Most the time. Sometimes he's not that. For some reason from about 6-8ish Lincoln decides he's bored. So we go on a walk after dinner almost every evening. Sometimes it's what keeps us both sane! Lincoln loves it, he doesn't make a peep the whole time. Sometimes he even falls asleep.

MAN i'm gonna miss this. It's getting colder. Soon we won't be able to do this anymore. So, i'm gonna have to get creative to keep this little guy entertained before dad gets home in the evening. I'll also miss these beautiful views: (don't mind the bad quality, taken by my oh-so fancy phone)

At the beginning of September Lorne and I had to chance to go to Virginia to see Lorne's mission. It was beautiful! We left baby behind, and that was both hard and weird. It was weird to be able to leave and go do what we wanted at any moments notice. I'll hopefully expound on our trip later so I can remember it. There were some fun/ humbling experiences. 

So, stuff is good. We look forward to conference to get some answers we're seeking about our future. But also conference is just good. I love it. 

Until next time! 

Four Months and Feelin' Fine

This is my 15 week old baby! We are ONE week away from his four month mark. Never in my life has four months flown by so fast. With each passing day this baby grows sweeter, smarter, cuter, bigger, happier, hungrier, "slobbery-er", louder, and "lovable-er".  

Sometimes Lorne and I will just stop and say to one another, "how did we get such a perfect baby?". Granted, we are his parents. But, how can he not seem perfect to anyone else?! We are in lala land!!! But I LOVE it. 

This little guy STARTED sleeping though the night roughly around 2 months. It was spotty, though. Not every not for a couple weeks after he was 2 weeks. But the last month or so, he's been really great. Once in a blue moon I get a fussy boy who wants to stay up all night, but that could be our fault for letting him get over-tired or something. But holy cow, back when we brought him home from the hospital I used to think nighttime would NEVER be the same again. Sleep deprivation really takes a toll on your mind, body, and mood. I would do it all over again, though. Probably.

I am just kicking myself for not being better at documenting his progress. So at four months, Lincoln:
-Smiles a lot
-Likes to talk (yell!)
-Loves attention
-Slobbers like crazy
-Still likes his bottle after nursing (i'm convinced he's ready for solids)
-Wears size 2-3 diapers
-Can't yet roll over all the way, but can rock on to his side sometimes
-is great at holding up his head, even when he's on his tummy
-Likes to be outside
-Wants to suck everything (especially his grass hopper blankey)
-Can wear 3-6 month clothes, even some 6 month clothes.
-LOVES to stand and raise his arms up way above his head to feel BIG!
-Always has to see what's going on around him
-Is getting better at taking naps and falling asleep on his own (knock on wood)
-Likes to sleep on his side or tummy (on mom and dad's bed...yikes!)
-Doesn't quite get the "cause and effect" thing

I'm excited to see how much more he grows! It sure is amazing how his little brain just knows what to do and when to start figuring something out. Our bodies are AMAZING.

Life with a fourth month old is so much fun. I can still get things done but still play with my baby. I can't complain one little bit.

We anticipate moving soon, trying to get ourselves in the mental state that this house will sell soon so we aren't shocked when it does. I want to be as ready as possible. It would be great if we could make the move as smooth as possible... When is moving ever smooth, though? Seriously, moving is such a bummer. It takes forever.

We've been lucky enough to swim in Nanna Nelson's pool many times already this summer. We're trying to get Lincoln used to it so he can learn to swim early! So far he's not sure what to think of it! He just sits there and sucks on his hand-I think the salty taste (it's a salt pool) is something new and intriguing to him.

I'm so excited for the 4th tomorrow! I really think it's one of my very favorite holidays. I'm SO excited to spend it with our new son! But that also means I need to be more prepared-which gives me the urge to make a to-do list in a few minutes so I don't forget anything as I get things together tonight. The 4th is pretty much an all day affair. Right?

Anywayyyy.... Things are great. We are happy. We are blessed.

Baby Blog Time!

My baby is 2 months old this week.... :(! And i'm just now blogging about his birth! Needless to say, adjusting to "parenthood" is a lil' bit busy! But OH so fun! We love our Baby Boy!

I doubt I blogged that my doctor told me I could be induced on the 11th of March. My due date was set for the end of that week, but he does inductions on Monday's, and he said I was good to go, so we went for it. I loved being induced!

We were able to go on one last date before becoming parents, so that was fun. We ate at the place we went to on our first date, and saw a movie! Earlier that day we did a deep clean of the house so we could be worry-free on Sunday, and when we came home from the hospital.

Sunday night we were all packed for the hospital and VERY nervous, and VERY excited. Everyone told us to get a good nights sleep... I don't know about Lorne, but my sleep was lousy just like every other night during my 7-9 months of being pregnant.

I got up a 5 am on March 11th. I showered and got ready for the day. Lorne and I were ready to go with a lot of time to spare, we were so over-prepared and excited! We left and made it so the hospital right on time. I was admitted at 7 am. They didn't waste any time getting my hooked up to the monitor and getting my I.V in!

I would say they broke my water at about 9:30. The nurse told me to try and wait until about 10:00 to get my epidural so I was in a good, steady laboring pattern. I thought that meant I HAD to wait until then, so I was scared to ask for my epidural even when those crazy contractions had me in tears. Luckily my mom was there to fend for me! She ran out and got the nurse even though I was hesitant about bugging the nurses already... When it's your first time, your totally unsure about everything!

After my epidural, I was lovin' life. I did get sick a few times, but other than that I was just happy I couldn't feel those contractions any more. I was able to get a few naps in while I was laboring.

Eventually (the day went by fast to me) I was feeling that pressure to push, but again I was reluctant to bug anyone in case it really wasn't time. And again, my mom took the initiative for me and grabbed the doctor and nurse. As soon as everyone came in and started prepping the room for the baby to come, reality was setting in and the only thing going on in my mind was, "wait! This is real? I'm really gonna push a baby out? I don't want to yet, I'm not ready!" but, Lincoln sure was ready! I probably only did 7 rounds of pushing and I heard my doctor say, "stop stop stop!". Then he held up (this is what he looked like to ME, his MOM) a perfect, beautiful, SCREAMING baby boy! I was in shock! I couldn't believe that was the "little" guy inside of me all those months, kicking my sides, sticking his little feet up in my ribs, making up throw up every morning, and causing all that comfortable heart burn. I was finally meeting my little guy! I reached out and touched his hand, but they had to hurry and get his cord cut and get him nice and warm.

I remember laying there, wishing I could stand up and go to him and hold him and comfort him. But, I had other things to do. 

Lincoln was born at 6:33 pm on March 11th. He weighed 7 pounds, 14 ounces. He was 21 inches long. And he was perfect. He IS perfect. 

I. love. being. a. mom. I have found my niche. I can't believe how happy I am. I think we have the most darling, most sweetest baby in the world. I'm pretty sure his dad would agree. :)

It being 2 months later, we've been getting more sleep and finally feeling like we can "do this"! Lately he's been sleeping from about 10:30-5:00ish. SO much better than every 2 hours. 

Lincoln has been starting to smile and try to talk these days. It's SO much fun! I could stare at him all day and totally ignore all the house work. I don't, but I could. 

So pretty much, things are great. This parent thing is the best ever!

Also, I get to be a mom for the first time this Mother's day! Wahoo! 

Until next time! 

What's Been Up.

Yikes, I feel like it hasn't been that long since i've updated, yet i'm so behind!

We sent our Elder Cloward off on his mission on February 20th. It was a bitter-sweet day! We were sad to say goodbye for 2 years, but we are also SO proud of him. He was nothing but excited when we dropped him off! He was so eager to go and get to work. He hasn't been homesick one bit! From the few letters we've had so far, we can tell he is incredibly happy and just loving everything. Amazing how he just grooved right in to it. We sure love him. I am sure he is the most handsome missionary out there! One thing is for sure, New York had better get ready!

It's hard to have him gone, but there's no other place we'd rather have him be.

I did my last few hours at the good ol' Seagull Book tonight. That was also bitter-sweet! I've worked there since I graduated high school, so the thought that i'm not coming back was hard to comprehend! But it's time to move on in life! The next time I go back to work, it'll be using my license I got in Beauty School.

 My very pregnant self in front of my store....

 My sweet assistant manager made the darling little diaper-motorcycle, and my manager made the cute dinosaur blanket. I got a lot of love on my last day! I felt very spoiled.

Can't believe it's time to switch over from sales associate to mother! Am I ready? I guess as ready as i'll ever be. My family threw me a DARLING baby shower on the 2nd. The theme was pinwheels, all the decorations were SO cute.

We had a fun time! The shower was a HUGE help in getting ready for our baby boy!

Speaking of Baby.... Looks like (hopefully) we'll be parents on the 11th! My doctor gave the okay to induce me at 7am on March 11th. So.... yeah. That's in 3 days. Almost 2. SOOOO scary AND exciting! We are almost done with our "get ready for baby" checklist! Last things to do are give the house a good last cleaning before Sunday, and get Lorne all packed for the hospital. Then, hopefully, go on one last date as just us two... I'm looking forward to spending time with my sweet husband and making new memories with him. Here's to hoping everything runs smoothly on Monday.... wish me luck! Next time I post, i'll be posting as MOM! Maybe. Maybe i'll post before then.... but most likely i'll be MOM. :)

Hopefully the little guy is ready for his nervous/anxious/excited/eager parents! He'll have to be a trooper for sure. :)

Sweep, or Blog? I Chose Blog.

Right now I SHOULD be finishing my sweeping and vacuuming, but i'm blogging instead. Obviously. I just needed to take a little "breather"... so I thought catching the blog up would be just the thing!

So.... The teryiaki sticks were a hit!! And by "hit", I mean Lorne and I loved them. :) I'm sure Baby loved them, too, but.... I think he likes all foods right now. I would most definitely make them again!

Also, those peanut butter bars really DID taste like they did when I was in elementary school. Success!

SO, we are tryin' our very best to get everything ready as soon as possible for this Baby to get here. I guess you never know if he's gonna come early, later, right on time... so I figure we need to just get everything done before February ends. I've made a master to-do list, and I think it's doable! One item is get Baby's nursery put together. We recently finished painting his room from a pale shade of yellow to a really light grey. Here's some pics of the progress....

When the room was yellow, still....

I decided to have some fun with the paint. That's the heart I drew, when I was done painting it, I looked up and noticed Lorne drew a "tic tac toe" board and was playing against himself. He covered it up before I could get a picture. It made me laugh and, I thought, kind of illustrated the difference between us ladies and guys....  

Lorne thought my heart was sweet so he waited to cover it up last... so sweet! ;) 

 So, anyway. It was fun! We're all done painting now, and i'll upload pics once we have it put together a bit more!

We have only 6 weeks left until Baby is sopossed to get here! It's nuts, thinking about how fast it SEEMS to have gone by. When I think back to the day we found out I was expecting it seems like that was FOREVER ago. The closer it gets, I can tell he's getting bigger and starting to run out of room! I'm trying to drink more water these days, (I should have been trying harder earlier. Oh well.) It's kind of torture with the size of my bladder these days, but it's worth it! My nifty water bottle the my sis-in-law gave me for Christmas has this nifty thing on it that lets me track how many bottles I've had to drink that day, so it's always rewarding when I can slide it over one more number! I need to drink at LEAST 3 bottle-fulls a day. That's roughly 60+ ounces of water. Good luck to myself!

A couple weeks ago Lorne and I went to Baby J's basketball game. He's quite the player! I thought it'd be fun to post once of his pics we got that night... we tried real hard to get an "action shot" but, I guess we need to work on our photography skills. ;)

 Baby J is the one in the blue jersey. He's so cool! Also, I think he's trying NOT to look at the camera. ;)

And this is my cute little sis, Lauren. After the game. At my parents. She's my mini-me!

Well, well, well.... I guess I'll share more SUPER exciting things about the Nelson's next time! I'd better get that sweeping and vacuuming done... ;) 

I think they call it... "Nesting"

Yeah, pretty sure I've hit the "nesting" phase of pregnancy. I don't know if everyone has one or not, but i'm pretty sure that if i'm having mine, it's manifesting itself through cooking. I'm loving making tons of recipes lately and trying different dinners. I wish it was manifesting by way of not getting enough of cleaning and organizing, but i'm afraid I feel the same way about those fun little things as I always have.... But seriously. Tonight we're having Teriayki Chicken kabobs, which are marinating in the fridge right now. So excited to try them! Who knew making your own teriyaki sauce was so easy... my hands still smell of garlic, though.

Today I made these little beauties...

Peanut butter bars! I stumbled upon the recipe on pinterest. They're supposedly the bars that you'd get at lunch in elementary school... I loved those. So we'll see how they turn out! Waiting for them to cool, while waiting for a fun wave of baby heartburn to pass...

By way of other "news", my baby "bump" is now big enough to do THIS....

Yeah, I can use that "bump" as a shelf now. My cup is literally sitting there. It also makes a nice arm rest. ;)

Only 9 more weeks to go! Wow! It's seems so far away, yet so close at the same time. I am currently 31 weeks and 3 days along. Only 61 more days to go!

Alrighty, until next time.