Noah @ 9 months

It was so tough to wrangle this kid for pictures. Definitely a two-person job next time. Also, he was SO chatty and moving all the time, it was hard to catch a smile that wasn't crazy blurry. But that about sums him up these days --- a busy blur.

28.75 inches tall - 68%

 21 pounds 5.8 oz - 78%

18.5 inches head circumference - 86%

Definitely not little any more!

NOAH:

• learned how to go from crawling to sitting up at the beginning of the month. I noticed him trying once or twice in his crib. But then BOOM, all.day.every.day. Now mix that with standing. That same day, he also realized he can pull himself to standing in his crib (giggling while he did it). It's pretty much all he does in there now.

• laughs like crazy when he gets tired. So fun hear him laugh uncontrollably. And he will laugh at anything!

• demands whatever we are eating. He will come and beg at your knee if he sees you with something. He also started drinking from a cup and is slowly learning to use a sippy. But he is a pro with his little baby cup. He pushes away his bottle unless he is really hungry in the mornings or after a nap. Really seems to just want more regular food. Which he can eat and eat and eat.

• looooves the computer. If you have it out, that's all he wants to play with and all he cares about. He learned he can crawl out of rooms this month and is now fascinated by everything in the bathroom and kitchen now. He loves to open and close cupboard doors. He's already unrolled a whole roll of toilet paper.

• pulls himself up to standing on almost anything, can cruise around our furniture so quickly, and will even use the walls to walk around to get where he wants to go. He can't stand up on his own but he really only needs a tiny bit of support to go somewhere. He has been pushing off us more and more but still d oesn't have great balance. Except in the bathtub, oddly enough.

• really good about letting me run in the mornings but I'm not fast enough to go as far as I'd like before he wants out. 

• we took him to the playground last week and he learned how to climb stairs. It is always fun to watch him figure things out.

• can clap his hands (he learned that one all on his own!) and will play patti-cake. He will start clapping if he is excited or happy about something too. It's so cute to see. He used to wave hi and bye, but refuses to anymore. Also knows how to high-five and throw his arms up for 'touchdown'.

US PARENTS:
• not much to report here. David is busy studying. I'm busy keeping up with Noah. This summer was really low-key for us. We went to the BYU game vs UCONN and it was great. It was also the first time dropping Noah off at a babysitter's. Kind of weird but it was nice to go on a date. We have a great little routine around here and life is so, so good.

Buying for a baby. (8 months later...)

I didn't realize how much stuff you end up buying for babies. After reading many reviews and considering what we could afford with our budget, this is what worked for us and what we loved.  I'm sure I'm forgetting some. (Baby brain is real, people.)
[not sponsored... just loved.]

1 •••  aden + anais swaddle blankets -- I knew I wanted these and they are by far my favorite blankets. These work well for both cold and hot weather and also as nursing covers. I also heard RAVE reviews of the bamboo ones, so maybe next baby?

2  •••  Burt's Bees bed sheets -- these are super soft and comfy. We also have these from target which are nice to switch out and a lot cooler during the hot summer weather.

3  ••• Ikea crib -- simple, white, affordable. That was all I was looking for and this fit perfectly. Ikea actually released a new line of cribs after Noah was born that I'm loving. But we had a deadline to meet and couldn't wait for those.  We also bought this pack n' play (but from Walmart). It came with a bassinet which was perfect when Noah slept in our room. 

4  ••• Foscam video monitor  [+ baby monitor app] - It's really meant as a security camera. It runs over your wifi, and you can check it on a computer or on your phone if you get an app. It was cheaper/better reviewed than any official "baby monitor" we looked at.   *I love being able to look at my baby. Especially when we decided to sleep train him. Or when I wake up during the night. Or when writing a blog post in the living room.      here is what it looks like on my phone:

5  ••• Overstock chair -- We decided to get this in lieu of a glider, hoping  it will last long enough to be used in a family room. It reclines, rocks, and has cushioned arms - so nice when you hold your baby for long periods of time! I actually slept in it a few times at the end of my pregnancy when sleep becomes so elusive. Not in this chair. We also ended up getting an ottoman to put our feet on. It now holds extra blankets.

6  ••• Ikea shelves (seen in this post) -- we use these for Noah's books! Definitely helps add color to our white renter walls.

7  ••• Blackout curtains (seen in this post) -- we made our own (fabric+blackout material from Joann's). Noah's room faces east so these have been gooooooood for getting to sleep longer in the mornings and getting him to take naps during the day. 

[We skipped the changing table/dresser -- a) no room b) I voted to get a better chair with the money from not getting a dresser c) dollar store baskets, hanging cubbies, and hangers in the closet work just fine.]

8  ••• Solly baby wrap - Real life pictures! I bought this right after we were married, so unfortunately they are a little more pricey now. I loved it! It was fantastic when Noah was a newborn. However, Noah wasn't a fan of being wrapped up so we didn't last super long wearing it. 

9  ••• Ergo Baby Carrier (purchased through ebates from Target) - I'm kind of kicking myself over the Ergo. I love love love it because it has a wider base than some other carriers and you can carry them for a long time (age-wise), but if I had waited just 3 more weeks, I could have had the option of the 360 wrap that lets the baby face any direction. Which Noah would highly prefer because he likes to face out. I know there are some other good carriers that are up-and-coming that have good features too. It would be fun to try those out. 

10 ••• Ingenuity Baby Booster Seat -- works great for our glamorous apartment living. Our kitchen has no space for a high chair. This has been fairly easy to clean and we like that it grows with Noah (we just removed the insert a couple weeks ago! Mostly to have more access to the food he drops haha)

11 ••• Fisher-Price Bouncer -- (gift from a shower) It was FABULOUS. We used it so, so much when Noah wasn't as squirmy and mobile as he is now. I've seen lots of these show up at the consignment store if you're willing to wait for one. 

12 ••• We bought this Snugabunny Fisher-Price swing after multiple nights with almost no sleep. We got desperate. Maybe not our best purchase because it didn't help as much as we thought. Perhaps if we had gotten it sooner? Hopefully some day another baby loves it more than Noah did because it actually is a really nice swing.

13 ••• Turtle Bath Sponge (gift from a shower) -- It worked so well that we wore it out. It was easy, stored well in our apartment, and it was fun to watch Noah grow and to think about how small he was at first. 

14 ••• Cloth diapers as burp cloths ---  We got a lot of handmade blankets with matching cloths, but some of them didn't quite absorb as well as I hoped. Sometimes the liquid would roll off. But these baby cloth diapers -- They are magical and soak up everything.

» I also wish I had gotten a boppy/related item. I think it would have helped with multiple things. But I just never got around to it/didn't want to spend the money whenever I thought about it «

(I never thought I would be the mom that needs THREE strollers with only an 8-month old baby. But I do. They are all useful and handy and great in their own ways.)

15 ••• Snap 'N Go - purchased from a consignment store (I will forever sing the praises of consignment stores and Craig's list for strollers!) We use it almost every time we go anywhere. It stays in our trunk, collapses so easily, is light and compact, and it is super easy to hook/unhook the car seat. Completely worth every penny. We will use this until Noah outgrows his car seat.
16 ••• Chicco Echo -- this has great reviews for being a pretty basic "umbrella" style stroller. Noah liked it right away, it's easy to fold, locks shut, seat adjusts to laying down and sitting up and in between. We got it on sale with a coupon code and already used it a ton. This was our walking stroller until I got the jogging stroller. This will be used way more when we are done with the snap n go. 

17 ••• BOB Revolution - I decided I wanted to be really picky about a jogging stroller. These are pricey, but my trade off was that I was going to find a good used one. This stroller is just great.It had everything I was looking for and I'm so glad I was able to be patient. I searched craigslist for many many weeks and ended up going with a used one that is older for a steal! (2006? 2007?) I cleaned it and we pumped the tires up and it functions SO well.  My motivation to exercise showed up when this stroller did. I really love it.

18 ••• Dohm Sound Machine - You can hear everything in our apartment. And in our upstairs neighbor's. And next-door neighbor's. This machine is our lifesaver. Based on this article, we keep this across the room just to be safe. I kind of want one for me.

19 ••• Crane Cool Mist Humidifier - This really helped Noah when he was stuffed up in the middle of winter and couldn't sleep because he couldn't breathe as well. This had great reviews and we have been happy with it.

Okay, that was longer than I thought. I'm done. Anything you got that you loved? Or hated? 

I'm always open to trying new things. And getting more stuff!

While I was pregnant, I loved these:
••• Vitamins listed from Grace's blog --- these are totally worth the pennies. (mini-backstory: Saved me big bucks.)
••• Books to read (re-read):
   Eat, Sleep, Poop - modern-yet-conservative take on parenting advice from a pediatrician who is also a recent dad.
   Nursing Mother's Companion - this was very informative.
   What to Expect...  (kind of an obvious one, but I really did like it.) I need to start reading the ones about your baby growing up too.

Noah's room!

I still have artwork from my elementary/middle school days that I want to hang above his crib.
But that is a project for another day.

Noah @ 8 months

8 months is my new favorite.

NOAH
• Babbles to himself on the floor, usually while gnawing on a toy (or a remote, yay). It is so fun to just listen to him and laugh at his goofiness. He also has the cutest little voice when he starts talking. 
• Loves the air conditioner. He stands in front of it and makes the most gleeful screams. 
• Will eat anything we put in front of him. He has been loving the blueberries we picked. He is not afraid to grunt to tell us he wants what we have. He also is really interested in drinking from our glasses (and water bottles) but absolutely ZERO interest in a sippy cup. (If you have a sippy you loved, what was it? I'm curious to see if another brand will do the trick.)
• When he wants to be, he is pretty mobile. He's not fast, but he is a determined little guy. He still army-crawls because he isn't patient enough to learn the traditional way, but he is working on it. He has started realizing he can follow me out of the room. 

• He already liked to 'walk' but now he has realized he can pull himself up to standing in the bathtub. SCARY. And now that is usually all he wants to do. He also likes to grab for the faucet and has turned the shower on more than once.
• He can happily jump in his jumperoo for quite awhile which is helpful for me cleaning up breakfast.
• He is so good for me when we go out on our morning jog/walks. I'm not fast, but he loves to look around and watch cars so win-win, I guess?
• Loves to watch videos of himself, and will smile and grab for the phone as fast as he can. We have some pictures on the wall of him from a few months ago. We like to show him them and say "hi baby" sometimes. And a couple different times, both David and I have been carrying him in the room and thought he made sounds that sound like it. SO CUTE. 
• Randomly shudders. It is hilarious and we have no idea why he does it. But we laugh every time.
• Still loves dogs. We spent yesterday with friends who have a dog and by the end he was squealing and trying his best to crawl after it. He tries to follow bigger kids too. 
• Gives theeeee BEST kisses right now. No more open mouth sloppies (which I kind of miss already). These are the soft, lean-in kisses where he presses his face to yours- sometimes even holding your face in his hands. My heart melts every.single.time. And bonus: he will give them to David too.

MOMMA:
• forced David to go blueberry picking (twice!) so I could stock up on supah cheap ($2/lb!!!) blueberries. We also picked way too many peaches - I sense a peach pie in our future - and ate dee-licious homemade ice cream and blueberry fritters. I'm actually tempted to go back today but I know they only have fritters on the weekends. Maybe Saturday? 
• Planning on sneaking in some more pool trips before they close (in 2 weeks, whatttt?? where did summer go? I miss Dallas pools.)
• AUDIOBOOKS are apparently the secret to getting me out the door to run. They keep my attention so much better than music. Especially when they are 6+ hours long. If only my library had more that are on my list.  
• I typed Noah's birth story while still in the hospital with him but finally got around to actually writing it in my journal. It's been good to remember some of the small details I forgot already.
• Noah and I have a great bedtime/nap routine down and I love, love, LOVE every minute that he lets me snuggle him. And when he does fall asleep in my arms, I snuggle him for as long as I can soaking up every tiny second and trying to keep my baby little. So grateful to be his mamma. 

And some of the goodies from this month's iphone storage overload! 

 

 

 

» 7 months «

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» 2 months «

» 1 month «

Baby, you're a firework.

(I didn't notice that my phone never published this. Oops.)

It rained on the 4th and the (very few) celebrations that were supposed to be that day got postponed. We tried to go on the 5th thinking that Noah would like the fireworks. We debated not going because it was going to be late and Noah REFUSES to sleep anywhere but his bed and at only at bedtime. We thought we could get him to fall asleep in the stroller. 

Nope. 

We ended up just playing with him. And he was mostly fine. He was really chatty and loved watching the other kids. Even when the fireworks started.  I think we were too far away from them (we had an escape route planned) and he didn't even notice them. So we left about 10 minutes into it and took him home to sleep. 

David and I discussed how, as a parent, you want your child to have new experiences and see new places and new things. Like Noah seeing fireworks. We tried to make it happen. However, you can't force your child to have the experience you want them to have. They have to do it on their own, in their own way. 

But that doesn't mean you stop trying. 

So maybe next year, kiddo. 

Baby Led Weaning (BLW).

Just posting this in case anyone wants to know more about a real-life BLW experience.

We got the okay to start Noah on solids at his 4 month check-up. And he liked them! However, with the purees came diarrhea. We had just gotten over 4 weeks of unexplained diarrhea, so when it started again the purees stopped.  A month and a half later when he was really into trying to grab our plates and was staring every time we ate, I decided to try BLW. (side note 1: our doctor gave us the okay at 6 months to let Noah eat whatever.... except the usual trifecta of cow's milk, honey, peanut butter/nuts, etc...  My family also has no food allergies that I'm aware of, so I was pretty confident in letting him try anything.)

Cucumber stick.

What BLW is:  Basically, you let your baby feed himself starting around 6 months because that is when he has more developmental skills. The whole idea is to let the baby decide what and how much he wants to eat and it introduces him to a variety of tastes and textures very early on. (Playing with food is highly encouraged.)

How you do it: Start with "sticks" of food (cooked to where they are soft) and then let the baby go to town! And he will do it with mucho gusto! Seriously. I was nervous that Noah would spit it out or throw it away because the texture was bad to him or the taste was too unfamiliar. But noooooooo. This kid loves food. He dug in right from the beginning.
   
   The hardest part of the whole process is making sure you don't panic when your baby uses his gag reflex when learning to swallow. The book goes in-depth on how babies have a different gag reflex than adults and that gagging is not the same as choking. After CAREFULLY (read: staring and hovering and minor panicking) watching Noah use his gag reflex many times, it really is crazy-amazing. He just spits that piece out and then will try to pick it up and eat it again! But we are there every time Noah is eating for the entire time. (And I read this and watched this multiple times to re-familiarize myself with infant choking rescue procedures.)

What we started with: plain cooked carrots, steamed apples, cucumbers, and broccoli. Then added squash, toast sticks, and sometimes cheese. Not a lot of actual eating happened. But he really seemed to enjoy the whole process -- picking the sticks up, gumming down on them repeatedly, and just trying new foods!

Broccoli was a BIG hit.

Where we are at now: Again, this kid loooooves food. He really enjoys it. It's at the point where we can't eat in the same room with him unless he can have some of it. I was trying to eat a pear this morning sneakily while he was drinking a bottle. Didn't work. He pushed his bottle aside so he could eat my pear. When/If we use a spoon, I just put the food on it and let him put it in his mouth.  At night, he mostly just eats what we are eating. (Side note 2: we really don't eat any "processed" foods and hardly ever go out, so we pretty much know what is going into each dinner we make.)

For example, from what we had this week:

• red curry soup - Noah ate potatoes, chicken, green beans, rice balls, and chewed on a slice of lime (which we thought he would hate, but nope. He kept trying to put the whole thing in his mouth.).

• homemade pizza - Noah got slices of fresh whole cheese, pieces of crust that had tomato sauce on them, and mango slices.

• this dish from Rachel's blog -- Noah eats EVERYTHING from it - the sweet potatoes, chicken pieces, black beans (all with spices on them and some melted cheese and cilantro and made with chicken broth), sometimes he gets an additional mini quesadilla and/or some fruit.

Here is everything else he has eaten so far that I can remember: squash, bell pepper, tomato, hummus (homemade), cottage cheese, hamburger, pasta, a little sausage (we added the spices to ground pork), toast, bagel, plum, peach, pear, grape, watermelon, apple, lime, banana, black beans, avocado, strawberries, cucumber, mango, scrambled eggs, french fries (He and I were in the airport. Just the two of us. And it was necessary.) 

a la airport with his french fries.

What I liked about it:

It is FASCINATING to watch his development. He was terrible at picking up food at the beginning and even worse at being able to get it to his mouth. Fast forward a month and a half. It is a completely different game. He knows what he wants and he can grab it so quickly.

 He is starting to use his thumb and first finger in a pinching motion, has significantly improved on chewing his foods and is still getting better at that, can now swallow with minor occasional gagging (usually on the tiniest of pieces which I don't understand, but hey...), and can even successfully scrape the "meat" off a piece of fruit and leave the skin with just his two teeth. He devoured almost a whole plum one day (not cut into sticks -- I just took a bite of it and handed it to him and he went to town). We were left with the pit and a little bit of skin.  

He started with only eating teeny tiny amounts; now, he is really starting to want more. But he still drinks his bottle every 3 hours and gets all the nutrition he needs from that. This is purely just exciting fun for him.  Now if we are going out, all I have to do is bring a bag of fruit or veggies. Or we have the option of just letting him eat food from our plates, which is fantastic too.

from a couple nights ago (during a world cup game, in the living room...)

The hard part: Your baby is going to gag no matter what. It doesn't mean he's choking. But the panic is still there. It's really hard to watch this happen and you worry every time (part of being a parent, right?).
• We still have to make sure certain foods aren't too big (grapes - because he likes to swallow those without chewing. yay.) and that the food we make for dinner has pieces that are a good size for him.
• He drops his bottle for our food. Which means we have to be willing to share and also really have to watch what we are eating. No more jelly beans or bowls of cereal in front of him.
• You do it on their time. It is best when they decide when they are done. Sometimes Noah liked to go slow and play around more.
• It is messy 98% of the time and not just him. The chair. The table. The floor. Trying to wipe him up is a bit of an effort and he sometimes gets an extra bath if it is really bad.

But I really love it. It feels like a normal family dinner time for us and I think Noah likes it too. So for me, the benefits >>>>> cons. I know this has been a rather lengthy post, but hopefully(!) it was informational for anyone interested. This was definitely the best way for us to go, but to each their own, right?

*I was totally not paid for this post. I think maybe 5 people read this blog and heaven knows I have no sponsors or anything like that. No, this is purely because I wished I could have read someone else's experience before starting ours. Just thought it would maybe help someone some day. 

Noah @ 7 months

warning. skip this if you don't want to read ALLLLL about my baby.

Teeth!

This kid. ♥♥♥

Life as a parent is definitely not glamorous but sure is glorious.

And Noah is our favorite part of every day. 

Noah:

• loves anything that makes noises -- rattles, banging toys together, banging his bottle on the ground, when the lawn is being mowed outside. Related: loves dumping his toy basket over.

iphone goodness...

• likes books! and will even hold still for them for a few pages. We have a 'touch and feel' book about animals that he really likes. He knows where all the spots are to rub the fur/touch the feathers. The whiskers page is by far his favorite. It is so much fun to watch him wait for that page. 

• still loves to watch cars. And now notices dogs and people more. Especially dogs. He gets excited when he sees them and will start giggling when they lick him. 

• will tilt his head to peer at you. Especially if he knows you are hiding around the corner. SO fun.

iphoooone too.

• jabbers at his daddy when they play on the ground before bedtime. It's all complete nonsense babbling that he never makes during the day at me.

• loves to tell us when he is done playing or eating, or ready to be picked up, or when he is not interested in trying to crawl anymore, or is stuck (usually under the bed or chair from scooting backwards). It's a nice loud grunt of frustration. 

• working on crawling - can go backwards, but not forwards. BUT would much prefer to be standing up holding your hands pretending to walk. Can turn his body on the ground fairly quickly and can roll over in the blink of an eye when he wants to (usually when getting his diaper changed or before getting in the bath....of course....)  

• still loves his bathtime and now sits up for the majority of the time. We also took him swimming a few days ago and he is definitely a fan. Except when he decides to put his own face in the water. Then he is NOT a fan.

comfortable, right?

• is a craaazy sleeper. moves EVERYWHERE. Also enjoys sticking his legs out between the slats, using them like a ladder to push himself around, and occasionally kicks his feet against the boards at either end. Which of course is awesome.  He does let me rock him before I lay him down now, hello heart melting daily! And it also makes me more likely to let him fall asleep in my arms because I know time is slipping away from us too quickly.

Out of focus face, but his hands!

Momma and Dadda:

• David has started studying for his test (which isn't until OCTOBER. yikes). Which means I should be working on a mini project every night with the time I have. Of course that hasn't happened yet. The dishes getting done (most nights) is my current accomplishment. 

• working on coming up with some summer plans. We toss around weekend options but then usually just end up relaxing which is just as good. We do want to do some berry picking now that blueberries are almost in season (!!)

• I've been binge-watching the world cup. (which coincides nicely with binge-watching Netflix when soccer isn't on... no wonder I get nothing done at night haha) I think I've only missed two games. It's pretty awesome and I will definitely have withdrawals when it's over. (*I also have issues when the Olympics are on.)    

• Most (UN)importantly --- I can now do the 2x2x2 rubik's cube. Add that to the 3x3x3 and the 4x4x4 from a little while ago. Definitely going to round out my resume someday.......

• my trial period on lightroom ran out and I'm still waiting on a good sale. Which never seems to come when you're waiting, right? If you see one, lemme know pretty please?

Bonus for making it this far! Family picture from a week ago! Our family apparently likes to tilt our heads all in the same direction.

(camera via phone....)

Noah @ 6 Months (!!)

*You can skip this post if you have no interest in the development of a 5-6 month baby. Because really, I'm the only person who is overly excited about these.  But hey, pictures!   :)

SIX months! How did that even happen?!

(Our appointment isn't until tomorrow, so I'll post stats when I get them...)

Oh baby. You are so loved! It makes me a little heartbroken to see how big you are getting. But also so happy because you have the CUTEST personality and are so active and love life.

NOAH:

- For a couple weeks, he would shriek/scream loudly to get our attention when he decided he was done doing something. Like sitting in his high chair when I try to make dinner. Or laying on his back. Now he makes the cutest ba/muh-muh sounds that lead up to the shrieks or whining. However, happy shrieks happen too.

-  When he is excited he will point his toes and hold his legs and arms out super straight with a huge smile on his face. Like planking face-up style, accompanied by happy shrieking. This always happens at bath time. He just loves it so much.

- Stares at people/things he doesn't know. Like stroller rides. They are pure silence for the longest time because he just loves to look. 

- Cut his first tooth! (5/23/2014) We had no idea it was coming in. And he is working on #2. But he doesn't seem to really notice.

- He really discovered his toes this month. And finally can put them in his mouth. (yay?) Last night he spent a lot of time putting them in his mouth before he finally went to sleep.

- Speaking of cribs, he rolls ALL over his. And not just when he is awake. Rolling happens multiple times every night. He really seems to like sleeping with his face smushed in the mattress. Which of course makes me nervous. But he is sleeping through the night (hallllllelujah). Wakes up early some days but I get a straight 6ish hours now. 

- His grabbing/chewing abilities have improved VASTLY. I'm doing mostly BLW (more on this later? maybe.) and he really seems to be loving it. Even just a couple weeks of it and he is way, way better. He loves broccoli and really liked his squash last night. 

- Figured out peekaboo (object permanence) with mommy/daddy. We aren't 100% sure he knows the game part but he definitely knows we are still there. 

- He is ALL boy. Loves to be roughhoused with --  tossed in the air/ tickled / being scared and the anticipation of all the above -- and hates to be cuddled or held close. 

- He notices details now. Like my hair (so fun. Hello, death grip) and likes to watch cars drive by out the window. It is so fun to watch his head swivel back and forth.

Mom (and Dad?):

- I love my sleep so sleeping through the night has been glorious. And napping when he does is nice too. 

- Went running on my own for the first time in..... A year? 15 months?.... And it showed. I felt like a dinosaur lumbering down the street while trying to get my body to remember what jogging (running sounds prettier, right? But let's be real here. It's like a mini step above a fast walk right now) feels like. 

- [TMI right here. You might want to skip this one.] I quit breastfeeding a month ago - but someone needs to tell my body that. Still get a little leaky occasionally. Someone tell me this goes away, please. He wasn't even eating from me very much before that.

- I have formula stains on lots (MOST) of my clothes from an unusually spitty phase Noah went through a couple weeks ago. (Not having a washer stinks big time).  I think I need a new wardrobe.....

- Feeling completely panicky that my little thanksgiving baby is already 6 months old. Lots of conflicted feelings over how much I love watching grow and learn and just wanting to put him in a protective little cocoon and never let anything happen to him. But life is about falling down and learning new tricks and growing and experiencing things. Mostly I just want to give him all sorts of experiences that teach him to be a kind, compassionate boy and to make the world a better place. He definitely makes MY life better. 

SIX MONTHS. Oh man.

Being a mom because of you

It's Mother's Day. I know I already posted but Noah had a rough bedtime and I had to rock him to sleep. 

Which NEVER (never,ever,EVER) happens. 

This boy does not like to be held close for more than half a second. And as I'm savouring this moment, there are SO MANY thoughts tumbling around my head.

I'm suddenly so aware of what type of mother I am. Yes, there are moments where I'm frustrated and bedtime is sometimes a very, very welcome time. However - this baby is MINE.

 I get to love him and teach him and show him the best things in the world. And want so much for him and want to shield him from the world as long as possible. And teach him how wonderful life is and how Heavenly Father has given us this earth and a chance at JOY. I get to raise this baby who I'm sure will be too old too quickly. And as he is snuggling into my shoulder, it's all I can do to hope that time slows down for just one second. One magical moment where he is my baby and I am his mommy together on our first Mother's Day. Because he is and always will be the greatest decision/accomplishment of my life. 

And I am a mother because of the influence of so many other women. Mothers, teachers, leaders, even friends my age who have been examples of the person I want to be, of who I want my children to emulate, of who I would LOVE for Noah to learn from and the type of person I want him to marry. You are incredible wonderful women. All of you. Even the ones who have no idea this blog exists. I would not have this sweet little tiny world of mine without you being placed in my path. 

And maybe someday in the heavens above, I will get a chance to squeeze you and maybe, just maybe I'll be able to finally find adequate words to explain how thankful I am to you. 

I am eternally blessed. Not just because of this little boy I can't bear to lay down in his crib. Because of you. 

Happy Mother's Day!

For all you moms, future moms, and grand-moms.
Especially the ones in my life.
You are the best!
Have a happy day!

The day I became a mother.