A week of firsts . . .

We had a very busy week last week. The boys got to meet their Great Aunt Nancy and Cousin Karna for the first time! We had a great time going on walks, playing and going out to eat. Jacob and Aidan loved both of them. At the end of the week, Jacob went to his very first spring training game. We rooted on the Cubs as they played the Giants. Now, I can't tell you who won the game because we actually watched very little of it. Jacob was having fun walking around, looking at people and playing with his very first game ball. (He was given a ball that was supposedly hit by Barry Bonds during practise) Even though it wasn't a Cubby ball, we took it. :-) He had tons of fun and that's what counts!



Karna, Aidan and Jacob

Aunt Nancy and Aidan

Karna, Nancy and Aidan

Our little Cubs Fan!!

Jacob and Papa at the game

Grammie and Jacob (Jacob wasn't really eating the Cracker Jacks, he was feeding them to Papa)

Heartache

No one ever said parenting would be easy. In fact, you hear that all the time. I tried my best to prepare myself to be a parent. Even more so when number two came along only 1 year and 15 days after number one. People often wonder how they can love a second child as much as the first, but the minute you see that baby, you know there is twice as much room to love, which in turn means there is twice as much room for heartache. Which is the one thing I didn't see coming, the one thing no one mentioned, the amount of heartache there is in raising your babies. This heartache isn't all bad. I used to equate heartache with things that were sad, not so any more. I'm learning very quickly that there are many kinds of heartaches and parenthood is made up of a conglomerate of them. I can't remember which one hit me first. Whether it was the happy ache I felt just watching Jacob play and be silly. Or if it was the sad ache I felt when he would get hurt, sick or feel afraid. It may have been the proud ache I felt when he would master something or would be extra gentle with Aidan, loving on him, giving him kisses. There is the warming ache that rushes over you when they look up at you and smile for the first or the hundredth time or as they snuggle with you first thing in the morning and right before bed at night. After an especially trying day, I have had aches of doubt - am I really the mother I thought I would be, am I doing something wrong . . .
I'm learning quickly to accept the fact that heartache is going to be a very real part of my everyday life. I can't recall a day in the past 16 months that I haven't felt at least one of those aches. I've wondered if these aches will lessen as my babies get older - but have come to the conclusion that they probably won't. There will be many more things mastered, many more gentle gestures, many more silly times, many more doubts, many more sad times, many more proud times and hopefully many more smiles and snuggles ~ which means much more heartache.

3 months old!

It's hard to believe that three months has already flown by! On March 2, Aidan James turned 3 months old. He is progressing along very well. At his two month appointment he was 9 pounds, 12 ounces and 23 inches long. That places him in the 10% for his weight and 50% for his height. I'm sure he's grown more since then. He will go back to the doctor at the end of the month for his 4 month check up. Aidan loves to smile and talk. It won't be long before he is giggling. He is almost sleeping through the night - he still needs one feeding, usually around 2am - not bad though - no complaints from me! Aidan loves his big brother and often smiles when Jacob comes around. It's very cute and makes my heart melt. We all love him so much!

A look into the past . . .the day we brought Aidan home

Aidan today - he fills out the carseat a bit more . . .


A very serious boy - ready for the military?


There's our smiley boy!


Lovin' life


His tiny hands at 3 months - very cute!

Linguistic Profile

This little quiz was interesting. I saw it on a friends blog and thought I'd give it a shot. I have no idea what "Yankee" is - but I guess I speak that way a little. Try it out for yourself. Have fun!

Your Linguistic Profile:

70% General American English

20% Upper Midwestern

5% Yankee

0% Dixie

0% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

A Different Perspective . . .

I've often wondered what the world looks like through baby's eyes. You read that at certain ages they can only see clearly at a certain distance, usually a very short distance. Yesterday I was reading the blog of our friends, The Nordlunds, and they found a website which depicts the vision of a baby. I couldn't wait to check it out. The website is www.tinyeyes.com. I plugged in a picture of Jacob and then the site tchanged it to how Aidan would see him being 3 months old. I found it very interesting. Take a look . . .

Original picture

How Aidan would see at 3 inches away

How Aidan would see at 6 inches away

How Aidan would see at 12 inches away

How Aidan would see at 24 inches away

Technical Difficulties

This afternoon we had a bit of a technical difficulty to deal with. Take a look at these pictures and see if you can figure out what happened . . .

Note to self . . .from this point forward, keep a close eye on little hands. . . hands that play with cell phones . . . hands that can fit in small places, such as the port on a speaker . . .

Yes, that is Cody's cell phone, placed in the speaker by Jacob. It took a little bit of thought, but we finally figured out how to get it out. Boy does this little man keep us on our toes! In case you were worried, we didn't get mad a Jacob, it was actually pretty funny . . .this time.

Pillow Talk

3:30amish - feeding time . . .nothing unusual. 3:56ish - back to sleep, or so I thought. Aidan had different plans. 4:10amish - go in and try rocking him to sleep - again, different ideas. Aidan was "talking" up a storm! He was making all sorts of cute sounds and flashing all kinds of smiles. I thought, how nice, he just wanted some conversation time with mama. Again, different ideas . . . I realize that Aidan is not having a nice conversation with his mama - he is in a deep conversation with the red and black checked blanket that we are sitting on. Oh well, it's still cute and probably won't last too long. 4:45amish - I'm very tired and find myself not only willing my adorable son to go back to sleep, but also that the red and black checked blanket would stop talking back to him . . .the things you think when you are sleep deprived. 5:00amish - finally back asleep and back in bed - we'll see for how long.

A present for myself . . .

It's not often, or ever, that I will splurge on something for myself. This time I did. I have really enjoyed taking pictures of my boys - but have been disappointed on more than one occassion when I can't capture the moment because of the darn lag on my digital camera. I won't have to be concerned with that any more! I recently purchased a new digital camera made by Nikon and am having a blast taking pictures with it. I have been able to actually capture my boys expressions before they turn and run and I end up with a back of the head photo. The picture clarity, the colors, all of it is amazing. I am still learning all that I can do with the camera - and hopefully some day will actually be able to uses it to it's full potential. Until then, I'm having fun playing with it. Here are just a few of the hundreds of photos I've already taken. Enjoy!

Our Bullmastiff, Gus - who has not shown up in many pictures . . .he get's a little left out with the boys around now - but we still love him.

Aidan showing off those beautiful baby blues . . .

Jacob playing on his slide with Grandpa - Ready?

Here I come . . .

Crash landing at the bottom . . .but still having a great time!

The Big "3-0"!

On February 7th, I turned the Big "3-0". On the Saturday following I celebrated with friends and family at TGIFridays. Thanks to all that came and helped make it a fun birthday! Here are a couple photos (not everyone is represented, sorry!) FYI . . .I only had one drink(first drink in over two years) and it didn't seem to affect Aidan in any way. :-)

The girls - Tiffany (best friend of 30 years - yes, 30 years - we've known each other since birth), me, my sister Lorissa and our friend Andrea

Smiley boys . . .

We have had great weather here and have had fun playng outside. Here is another picture that shows what a big boy Jacob is becoming! Every day I look at him and my heart grows more and more. He fills our days with laughter and is quite the entertainer.

Our up and coming entertainer . . .Aidan is starting to have more awake time and is a happy baby. I love to see him smile and listen to him try out new vocal sounds. I am trying to take in everything, knowing how fast this next year is going to fly by.

I LOVE MY BOYS!!!

Beautiful Boy . . .

Here is Aidan James at two months old. At his 2 month doctor appointment he weighed in at 9 pounds, 12 ounces and was 23 inches long. He is definitely making up for lost time. We are so thankful to have a happy and healthy boy!

A little late, but thought you should know . . .

We are raising Bear's fans!
We rooted the Bears on and were very disappointed at the loss!!
Maybe next year. . . .

Jacob and Aidan see snow for the first time!

We spent the past weekend at our friends cabin, Kamp Keller. It was our annual girls weekend with our little ones. We had a blast in Heber playing in the snow. I'm sorry for so many pictures, but it was hard to pick the best ones!

Jacob sledding for the first time!

Jacob at Grammie and Papa's lot

Aidan all warm and cozy

Aidan all warn out from playing

Mama and Aidan

Mama and her boys!

Jacob and mama sledding

My sister, Lorissa, and me getting ready for our race

Aunt Lorissa, Grammie, Jacob, me and Aidan (well the top of his head!)

The art of snowball making - Jacob and Tyler learn how to make the perfect snowball

Beautiful blue eyed boy!

Isn't life sweet . . .

I have discovered that there are many "moments" that occur with your kids. There isn't one moment that is more special than another, they are all amazing. I had one of those "moments" with Aidan this past Wednesday. I was sitting on the floor, playing with Jacob and Aidan was laying in my lap. I took a break from playing and looked down at my little wonder and he looked up at me. At that moment, he recognized me as mama - his blue eyes lit up and he smiled. What an incredible moment. I would consider that to be a moment of pure joy. I look forward to many more "moments" with my boys. We are truly blessed.

Attempting to be creative . . .

These are some photos of Aidan. I was attempting to be a little more creative with my photography. I still have a lot of practise ahead of me. Anyway, I like these and thought I would share. Enjoy!

Brotherly Love

Jacob has become the best big brother! He loves to give kisses over and over again to Aidan. Just yesterday, Aidans blanket fell off and Jacob walked over and placed it back on him! It's so amazing to watch the love he has for his brother grow and grow. It will be fun to watch their relationship bloom as they both get older. I have been blessed with two amazing boys.