Half Birthday!

Last Monday was Kylan's half birthday! And let me tell you, he is rockin six months! Every day he amazes me, and every day I am eternally grateful that I get to be his mama.

We have had some pretty big changes this last month. Ryan started his new job, so he no longer works nights... which we LOVE! He is now doing a Spanish speaking customer support type job, which we also LOVE. I am excited that he will be able to use his Spanish everyday. And then of course there were the holidays! I made some pretty fun things, and I shall eventually get around to showing you them!

And as for Little Man. Oh boy. This past month has seen so many new things. 

He just had his check up today! Never fear, he is still a baby giant :) He is 18.2 pounds (which is pretty average) and.... wait for it..... 28.75 inches tall! (which is pretty much way above average!) Oh how I love this guy. Shots, however, we are definitely not a fan of! Thankfully at his 9 month check up there will be no needles! 

He has been teething like mad, but he is still an angel. Basically he is just a lot more slobbery than he used to be. He hasn't begun the actual cutting of the teeth yet, so we will see how that goes when the time comes! 

He is ridiculously mobile nowadays. (Trying to take his six months pictures was quite the adventure... Staying perfectly situated on the blanket and making adorable facial expressions is definitely a thing of the past. Now its all about how far he can scooch, trying with all his might to get the camera, and rolling up in the blanket!) He discovered rolling to be quite the effective means of transportation. But he has also been scooting and wiggling, and I imagine crawling is not too far off! He can hang out for a little while on his hands and knees, but doesn't really know what to do once he is there. There have been more than a few entertaining (and harmless) face-plants recently! He does this little dance, wiggles his bum around and wiggles his legs forward... but then because he hasn't figured out how to move his hands yet, things pretty much always end in a tumble! 

He really loves being on his tummy, but also has a profound love of being on his back and arching up. He quite literally lifts his whole body off the floor and balances on his feet and head in this adorable little backbend. It used to drive me crazy, because, well, it just doesn't look that comfortable! But I figure, if it hurt, he probably wouldn't do it.

He still loves bath time! Now rather than just laying there and kicking his feet, he has really begun to play and splash and explore. In fact getting him to lay down, even for just a second so I can rinse his hair, is quite the chore. He's got a mind of his own, for sure!

He can sit up for little bits of time, but he still needs some support, especially because he tends to lose his balance whenever he gets excited or sees something he wants.

He is sleeping well at night and... no longer wants to be swaddled! Oh man. Let me tell you. It was a sad day for me, when he fussed and fussed every time I put him down because he did not want to be wrapped up. Small, little, new babies like to be swaddled. Kylan has always loved it. But alas.... while he is still small, little, and new to me... he is not so much those things in babyland. 

This past month Ryan and I got the opportunity to go see Wicked with my sister and her husband. The only hitch was that it was showing in St. Louis... which is 4 hours from where we live. And apparently Broadway and off-Broadway, they are baby-haters alike, and also extremely snooty booty about such things. So Kylan couldn't even go in the building, let alone to the actual show. Which presented a problem! But with the help of my incredible mother, father, and niece, (and a wonderful little breastpump) we were able to go defy gravity and have one short day in the emerald city! It was extremely hard for me to be away from Kylan, but I am grateful to have family whom I love and trust enough to care for my sweet little one! 

He loves people and is still a huge (and practically non-stop) flirt. It is funny to see the look of surprise on people's faces when they happen to glance at him and see that he is smiling his little face off at them. He has a tractor beam or something, because he just draws you in and I'm telling you, resistance is futile. 

We have yet to venture into the world of food with this little guy. Mostly I just don't think he needs it yet... We did get a Baby Bullet for Christmas though! I say "we" because even though it was technically for him, I am pretty sure he finds the box more exciting than the actual machine inside... I, however, I am super excited to get to make all sorts of homemade deliciousness for kiddo when we do decide to start eating solids! 

It has been a glorious six months!

Some behind the scenes pictures... Like I said, gone are the days of laying still!

Trying so hard to get the lens cap...

Triumphant!

His incredible back-arching skills!

'Tis the season

I have always really loved the holiday season. It is beautiful, magical, sincere, heart-warming, full of cute coats, snazzy scarves, and of course tons of boots, apple cider, eggnog, cookies galore, people are nicer, the music is better ... all things good! The past few weeks, though, I have been thinking... and I am pretty sure that I love it even more now, as an adult, than I did when I was younger! Who woulda thought?

When I was little, Thanksgiving meant no school and delicious food. Nothing wrong with that, right? Then when I went away to college, Thanksgiving meant that the semester was almost over. It was the beginning of the light at the end of the tunnel. It meant that for the next several months the only ground to be seen would most definitely be snow-covered (for, by November there is just no melting away in Rexburg!). And most importantly it meant going home to see my family. Last year, I was pregnant... Food. Thanksgiving meant food. And sleeping in. (I hope that this is not misleading. I am not really so shallow as to let the true meaning of the season escape me. I have always sincerely loved that there is a whole day devoted to family and being grateful for all our countless blessings)

Nowadays, I am in not in school, I work full time as a mama (which basically means I have the best job ever!), there is no snow, and I see my family pretty regularly.

This year, I have been so in love with the season and I think I know why. I was a kid with no money, I was a poor college student, I was working and pregnant... Now I LOVE being able to really contribute and show my love for my family and friends by giving of my time and talents! I tell you what, its just beautiful. Simply, purely beautiful.

I loved cooking for Thanksgiving and I am already looking forward to what I will be making for Christmas dinner. I am so excited about the gifts I am making for Christmas I could almost pee my pants!... Yesterday I got pretty much all of our Christmas shopping done, and thanks to Pinterest I am going to spend the next few weeks completing the wonderful things I have planned for my family. Its all very hush hush, sneaky peeky right now, but after Christmas I will show all you folks my charming creations!

Basically I am just so thoroughly pleased with the time of year. I am incredibly blessed. I love you people and I am grateful that I get to share the good, the sometimes not so good, the funny and the real with you! Happy Friday friends!

Oh. p.s. We took some Christmas pictures of little man (its his first one afterall!!!). Oh boy. Words cannot express. So I will show you. I want to do some editing so this is just a tiny sneak peek!

Five Months

Its that time again! My darling, little cutie pie is another month older!!! So, naturally I'm going to tell you all about it...

First of all, (I am not going to take the time to look, but I am fairly certain that the majority of my monthly baby updates begin this way...) I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S BEEN FIVE MONTHS!!! (...And really can you blame me? Basically, I am in awe of the whole thing. I grew a human. Pregnancy in and of itself should pretty much just be impossible, but of course Heavenly Father is smarter than me and obviously made it work. So then, this tiny, little--or in my case tiny and little to me, but not so much speaking comparatively-- baby comes out and grows at the speed of light. Learning new things by the second, growing and discovering. Time seems to stop and race on too fast all at the same time. I have a baby. And he is now five months old... Two words: Woah. Nelly.)

And what has my baby *BFG been up to?

One of my favorite things these days is watching him grab things. He loves grabbing anything and everything, and seeing him use his hands so well and with so much coordination just makes me smile. I love the look of concentration on his face!

He is fascinated by colors and loves it when I have designs or writing on my shirts. He stares, completely mesmerized.

He loves to stand... but his true love is jumping! Like a little kangaroo, this one!

He rolls over all the time now. When he first learned to roll over, just before 3 months, he rolled from his back to his front. A few weeks ago I witnessed, for the first time, him rolling from his tummy to his back. The kiddo moves around in his bed so much and ends up in places and positions completely different than when I lay him down. So it wouldn't surprise me if he has been rolling over both ways for quite some time!

Because he is such a rolly polly, he spends a lot more time playing on his tummy. But now that it is by choice he doesn't seem to despise tummy time quite so much. In fact, he really enjoys it! He wiggles around and loves going after his toys. He does little mini push-ups and then when he gets a little worn out he lays his head down and sucks his thumb. Cutest thing in the world.

He loves singing and dancing as much as ever! Lately we have been rocking out to Christmas music... Ryan is not such a fan of Christmas music, so I am starting young with Kylan!

When it is too early for bedtime, but too late for a nap and Goofy Gus becomes more of a Grumpy Gus, one of our favorite things to do is play in the sink. We fill it up with some warm water, and I sit him on the side and .... Splash! Kick! Jump! Giggle! ... He loves it... Sure he, the kitchen, and I all become quite the soggy mess, but it is definitely worth it!

We are working on sitting up. So far he can manage a few seconds before he slumps over, but he gets stronger and stronger everyday.

I love getting to know this sweet boy. I love learning about his personality and watching him discover. I find it difficult to accept that next month he will be half a year old. Ohhhh the craziness of that fact. But then again it shall be our first Christmas as a family of three! I think that shall soften the blow considerably!

*BFG... Big Friendly Giant, a delightful character and children's novel, written by Roald Dahl. Do ya get it?? Eh? I am real clever huh? :) Oh how I love my giant baby. He is just the right size and perfect for me. Not so much for his carseat though. Those days are numbered. Luckily I ordered a new carseat from Amazon just the other night! Excited for it to get here! Well... Good day mate!

Halloween!

I know its a little late, but I still feel the need to document this lovely, not so spooky, Halloween!

This was Kylan's first Halloween... obviously! :) And it was so fun. We went to a Trunk or Treat in Ava on Saturday (October 27th, which happens to be Nay Nay and Spencer's birthday!) and then on the actual day of Halloween we went trick or treating in Ozark and to my ward's Trunk or Treat... no offense my Ava peeps, but my ward's Trunk or Treat kicked your Trunk or Treat's butt.

I had so many big plans for costumes this year. Seriously. It was going to be a family affair and an epic one at that! Unfortunately I am the queen of procrastination. So none of my plans actually panned out. But don't you worry! I am making it happen next year!!!

As it was, we found a nice little infant costume at Target, which almost did not fit him... or ya know, depending on who you ask you could just skip the "almost"... but only because kiddo is a giant! Nonetheless, he was the most adorable pea pod ever.

The little nieces were tutu ghosts and totally rocked it.

At one point I called Nay Shay a little monster (because, really that girl is fierce when you stand between her and her candy) to which Bella replied "She's not a little monster! She's a little ghost!!!"

Anyway, here are some delightful pictures! Enjoy. And once again, I know its late, but I hope you all had a safe and happy Halloween!

A Third

My little Gus --sometimes Goofy, other times Grumpy, mostly just adorable-- is 4, thats right FOUR months old!!! What? Excuse me. My child is a third of a year old?!?!?!? I will never understand the crazy time warp that seems to be causing my tiny baby to grow up way too fast!

Oh how I love this small child. No matter what the circumstances may be, one look from his sweet, little face and I'm done. None of the little messes of daily life, the struggles and trials, nothing seems quite so bad as I originally thought. Turns out, this kid has magic. Mind-blowing, innocent, sweet and helpless, pure and perfect, and like I said, simply magical. That's what my baby boy is.

So what has this past month seen??? Well. I tell you what, if I hadn't been here to witness it, I wouldn't quite be able to believe how much he has grown. It is just plain silliness!

I am not positive on his stats at this point in time. His 4 month check up is on Thursday, so never fear, I will fill you in then! (*Update* My little giant weighed in at 16 pounds 2 ounces, and is nearly 28 inches long!!! He is pretty average for weight, but off the charts for height........ time to begin the search for an over-29-inches carseat!) ...now, on to the good stuff...

This month has been one of discoveries!

He discovered his thumb, and let me tell you, he is a huge fan! :) The term "thumb sucker" seems to have some sort of negative connotation, but when I see his cute little hand curled in front of his face and hear his adorable lips smacking, I just can't figure out why? Some moms may discourage thumb sucking, but I am not one of them. So this discovery is one of my favorites!

He also found his feet this month. Up until recently he delighted in discovering WITH his feet (he especially loves putting them in the stream of water as his bath fills up!).... oh but now! Now he has actually realized them to be the most fun and wonderful things ever. Oh how it just melts my heart and soul to see him all folded in half, a foot in each hand, toes in his mouth. I'm just not sure it gets much better than that! He is so in love with his toesies that when he has some time to spare, in the middle of the night!, he kicks free of his bonds (also known as, his nicely, neatly swaddled blanket) and finds those adorable little feet and goes to town! By the time I get in the room, to feed him, he is cooing and conversing with his angel friends, not a care in the world!

Raspberries. Oh yes. This kid has learned how to blow raspberries. It is so funny and adorable. Sometimes he will just look around blowing raspberries, perfectly content. He is such an adorable goofball. He was sick this past week, and after he slept most of the day, instead of going to bed (at like 8:30, almost 2 hours past bedtime) he decided he would rather smile and coo, blow raspberries and look around. I think Heavenly Father, geniusly and purposely, made babies irresistibly cute and sweet so that even when you are exhausted and on the verge of tears, you just can't help but smile at them, because looking at perfection it is hard to stay grumpy!

He loves to flirt. I don't want to think about what this natural inclination will amount to 15ish years from now (... my baby as a flirting teenager is just not something I can handle!), but at the moment it is joy personified. Seriously. I would like to see someone try to resist this. His powers of flirtation are undeniable. You don't even have to be looking at him or paying him any attention. He just turns on the charm, smiles his big adorable smile and waits for you to turn his way! Then he really lets you have it, with the cooing and the squealing. His final tactic: the feigned shyness. "Oh don't look at me. I'm just too shy and sweet and so I will just nuzzle into my blanket and hide my infectious smile. Oh yes, I shall leave you wanting more!... Bahaha I got you right where I want you." He is a tricky little one, I tell ya. But alas, there is nothing for it. He is just too cute to be resisted. Luckily, for all mankind, he only uses his powers for good, and never evil!

My sweetie still loves music, dancing and mommy singing to him! I love to watch his face light up when I break into song. He doesn't mind my embarrassing dance moves either!

He loves being outside, although with the weather getting colder we don't go on walks as often as we used to.

The biggest change this month though??? As of 3 nights ago, Kylan is sleeping in his own room. Oh boy... The truth is I don't think he cared so much!... but it was a big and scary change for me. One of the most comforting and beautiful things was being able to lay in bed at night and hear him breathing, knowing that he was safe and sleeping soundly. But, I decided that as honorable as my intentions may have been it would be selfish to keep him in our room, when he was quickly outgrowing the pack n play that he slept in. So now, he is just a few extra feet away, across the hall. I can still move quickly to his doorway to hear him breathing, only now he seems to be sleeping more soundly. I guess you could call it a win-(pull your big girl panties up and deal with it)win situation!

There are a great many things wrong with the world, in general... but MY world, safe and sound in our little home, my honey, my baby, and me? Its all things glorious!