The most precious sound I have ever heard....

Ethan is now 4 1/2 months old and we can officially say we have heard Ethan laugh in a "I am hysterically laughing" kind of way. Up to this point he has laughed and giggled, but this video will show you him just completely think that his daddy is the most funny guy on earth. I honestly can watch this video 10 times per day if I let myself.  We love this little man so much. Life doesn't get much better than this....enjoy!

4 months old

Dear Ethan,

How's my buddy? That is what mommy and daddy say to you all the time. You are now 4 months old. We can almost cry every day from pure happiness and the absolute joy you bring to our lives. I can honestly say this is the happiest time in my whole life. Just when I thought it couldn't get better than college life, this whole mommy thing really takes the cake.  You have a few new nicknames - we call you bull shark and we also call you buddy. You are probably wondering why in the world would we call you bull shark? Well, it goes back to when mommy and daddy went to Positano, Italy. We did a lot of swimming in Positano - off the shore of our hotel and in some awesome grottos when we took a chartered boat to Capri. Mommy is always thinking sharks will bite her legs off. I know - mommy is ridicilious. So, when we returned home we called ourselves the sharks because we felt like we were one with the sea in Italy. Then, we said - what kind of sharks are we? We analyzed all the sharks in the sea and we finally came to the conclusion that we would be bull sharks. So, when we had you we said "It's our baby bull shark!" and it has stuck every since. It was really appropriate when you were 3-7 weeks old and you would cry a lot from your reflux pain. Now you are the happiest baby on the block, so your Aunt Caren says that you are not a shark because you are too loving. You are a manatee. However, I told her that you will always be our baby shark.

You are in size 3 diapers because you now weigh 15 lbs 15 oz and you are actually teething! I thought it would be too early to be teething, but you are not that far away from the average of 6 months.  This past Sunday you had a rough day - you were chomping on your fingers, not wanting your bottle, and crying. It was so sad to see you in pain because normally you never cry. Mommy went and bought you the vibrating star teether which massages the gums.

You are almost sitting up! I can't believe it! You can actually sit up for 20 seconds or so before you tip to the side. I almost think you might skip the whole rolling over part. You are starting to show signs of trying to roll over, but at this rate I think you might go right to sitting up.

Your personality is starting to emerge. You are really laid back and you are very smart. You have already figured out the tricks to give yourself a break when we are doing your sitting up exercises. You are still loving your stuffed animals and I can tell you are starting to favor Micky. You love structure but you are also good with going off your schedule as well. You and Daddy took your first trip to Lowes. Daddy loved being with his boy.

We love you so much buddy.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Library and play dates oh my!

Ethan went to story time at the Windermere library! They have it every Thursday at 11:15 am.  We met up with my friend Kim and her daughter Kayla and afterwards we went to the cafe right in downtown Windermere for lunch. Ethan seemed to enjoy his new suroundings at the library and was definitely intrigued by all the other babies and the singing. He was the youngest one at almost 3 months old. Most of the babies were crawling towards the middle of the circle and some were even walking. So, Ethan couldn't get as involved as the others, but nonetheless we had a great time.

We had another playdate with our friends Bryan and Karissa and their little boy Liam. This was also their first time meeting Ethan and we just had a ball of fun. Liam has a lot of energy and is such a cutie. We made him get in the baby playmat with Ethan. It was really funny. He was good though! He got underneath for the picture. :)

Visits with Gram and Aunt Colby, Uncle Hunter, and Aunt Haley

Back in November we had a very nice visit with Grams (Todd's stepmom) and Colby (Todd's sister.)  They came all the way from Pennslyvania to meet Ethan for the first time. Colby was so cute and was very loving to Ethan. She was like a little mom. It was adorable. Paula was also very smitten with him and we all just enjoyed hanging out in the family room and catching up.  They came down on a Friday night and on Saturday we planned on getting out a bit.  That morning Paula and I took Ethan on an hour long walk in our neighborhood. The weather was gorgeous and I think she enjoyed not having to worry about shoveling snow! haha. Later that day we went to the Apple store to pick up Haley's Christmas gift. (we ordered her an iPhone case) Then that night we had my mom, aunt, uncle, and cousin Jamie over for dessert and coffee. Overall it was a very busy day and wonderful to spend with family. Unfortunately our visit was cut very short because Colby and Paula both became very sick. They must have picked something up on the plane! It was definitely not the visit we planned with them. Nonetheless, at least they were able to meet Ethan and got to spend some time with him.

Then in January, Todd's other sister and brother came down for a visit. College was still in session when Paula and Colby came down so that is why they came down separate.   They also arrived on Friday and we just hung out at the house and they just loved meeting their nephew. Haley is going to make such a wonderful mother some day. She is so good with babies! Hunter just wants Ethan to be a NHL player. haha.  On Saturday I actually woke up with a 101 fever! I had a nasty sore throat and a double ear infection 2 days before they got there and I was hoping it was all gone for their visit. I could provide a whole other post about how crappy my immune system has been since having Ethan, but I won't do that to you. :) So, I rested while they went out shopping for the day. They went to the Burton store and then over to Peter Glenn's ski and sport store. Hunter got a shirt to bring home and they came back to the house a few hours later. Todd and I cooked dinner for them and then they went to Margaritaville that night. On Sunday I was feeling much better - thank goodness! We spent the day hanging out with Ethan. That night Mamaw, Aunt Liz, and Uncle Dan came over to pick up Haley and Hunter. Of course we had a wonderful time and we got some really cute pictures of Mamaw with Ethan and another one of Ethan smiling at Aunt Liz. So adorable!

Ethan 3 months Old

Dear Ethan,

Wow! I cannot believe you are 3 months old already. Sometimes I feel like it was just yesterday we were at the hospital having you and other days it is even further back and I forget what days were like before having you. This month has been really fun because you smile SO much now! I feel like I get at least 20 smiles a day from you. The difference in smiles from 2 months old to 3 months has been almost tripled. This has been my absolute favorite month so far. If mommy or daddy smile at you we almost get an instant smile back and let me just tell you that we can spend a whole day doing just that. There is nothing too new to report this month except that your neck, back, and head strength are getting stronger with each day. You still love your playmat. You really love Octavious (yes, we named your animal friends) , the octupus that hangs around in your playmat. In fact, your turtle friend Nemo is getting a little jealous  because when you were 2 months old you were more into him.  Your grip has gotten even stronger. Lately we have noticed your cheeks have been very sensitive and have gotten a little irritated. We switched your sheets to organic and your soap to Dove unscented and that really seemed to bring the irritation down a lot.  When we took you to the doctor about your cheeks we found out that you now weigh 12 lbs 13 oz. We are so proud of how strong you are growing! You are now in size two diapers. You are thriving. Your hair is coming in even more so now. I thought you might lose some like other babies, but it seems like you won't be losing much. Your eyes are getting more blue every day. The other amazing thing is your new sleep schedule. You go to bed at 8:30 pm and you wake up at 7:30 am. I can't begin to tell you how happy this makes mommy and daddy and we are just so thrilled thinking about how much your brain is growing during all that amazing REM sleep. When you are older and can understand, mommy can teach you what REM sleep means and how important it is to your growth. Another important milestone that you hit was that we transferred you to your big boy bed this month.  We knew you were ready when we realized that our tossing and turning were affecting your sleep since you were sleeping right next to us in your pack and play. Every time mommy or daddy would move, you would toss and turn yourself. Also, in our sleep training book it mentioned that if you do the change after a baby is 3 months old then the baby will know his surroundings and perhaps the transition wouldn't go as smoothly. I didn't want to risk you being scared in your room. So, we waited until a Friday night in order for us to both be able to wake you up on Saturday morning. Plus, mommy felt sad you weren't next to her in the room and nervous and daddy was helping mommy through it.  Lo and behold, you slept through the night in your crib and you were a big boy!

You have some other new toys that you got for Christmas that have really seemed to peak your interest. Great Grandma gave you a doggie that is awesome for learning! It teaches you about all the different body parts and also lots of classic learning songs and even some social skills. Right now that is your toy of choice. We actually decided to not bring out all your toys that you received at Christmas at the same time. We felt that would be too overwhelming. So, we decided to bring them out one at a time. We figured it would be a good learning lesson as well to teach you to feel appreciative for each one.

We went out for your first baby event this month. It was story time at the library so we went and met up with your favorite buddy Kayla. We had so much fun! We even went to lunch right afterwards and you were such a good well behaved boy. I am looking forward to the days when we can do other things as well. Mommy will research which ones she thinks will be the best ones and we will have so much fun! Daddy just loves you so and now that you are smiling all the time, all he can do is rush home from work to say "Hi, buddy! It's Daddy!" and to see you smile makes his heart melt.

The other great thing is that your reflux is almost gone. You never cry after feedings anymore and are just a happy happy baby. Another weird thing that mommy has been going through is that she seems to get sick easily. Last month mommy got the flu and this month mommy had a really bad sore throat and a double ear infection. When mommy went to the doctor they told her that it can take up to a year for a pregnant woman's immune system to go back to normal. So, on top of my daily vitamin, I might add one more supplement. We shall see. Thank goodness for Nonnie, Grandma, and Aunt Caren's help!

Happy 3 month birthday my smiling boy! May your smiles always fill up your life.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

 

 

Ethan's First Christmas

Todd and I were so excited to be with Ethan on his first Christmas. There is something so much more magical when you have a baby involved.  It started the first weekend in December when we started putting up Christmas decorations. This is actually late for us because we usually start decorating in November. However, spending time with Ethan was a little more important to us this year instead of spending hours on decorating. So, we decided to still decorate of course but just scale it back a bit.  We still put up our outside lights (just not as many) and we put our Christmas village up over the fireplace. We still put up our two trees - one in the formal living room and one in the family room. This is our favorite time of year.  Putting that Christmas music on and getting out the decorations just puts the biggest smile on your face. Todd and I will banter back and forth about who is going to put the village pieces up first and who is going to put the favorite ornaments on the tree  We are like kids ourselves.  Just thinking about how Ethan will know what is going on next year since he will be over 1 years old and how he can be involved with the decorations just warms our heart already.  My mother in law Jacki was able to come down from Jacksonville to be involved with the Christmas decorations. I think she laughed to herself a lot hearing Todd and I banter back and forth about who gets to put the favorite ornaments up. Let me explain a little more. As I mentioned before we have two Christmas trees. The one in the formal living room is a themed tree and the theme is basically the colors of blue and silver with lots of crystal ornaments. It is gorgeous. Our family room tree is the tree the represents all the memories of our life. Todd and I will get ornaments that mark every occasion or special event. Whether it is the puchase of our new home, bridal/baby shower, trips to France, Italy and Switzerland, trips to all of the islands we have been to, ski trips, and even funny purchases. For example - when Todd got his new grill when we moved into our new home my mom got him an ornament of a grill. Every Christmas we relive these memories and feel blessed beyond measure for the life we have. See the thing is that life has its ups and downs and we know that we are currently in a very special up in our life (having a baby makes you want to sing from the rooftops with happiness)  and when a down comes around in our life we can always smile when we decorate our family tree. Todd was funny this year. We got this beautiful set of baby's first Christmas ornaments from Jacki's friend Evelyn. When I noticed them towards the bottom of the tree I asked Todd why they were down there? I wanted them in the middle of the tree! He said that he put them in order of our life. So the top of the tree was the bridal shower and the wedding and honeymoon. Then the middle of the tree was the purchases of our old townhome and some of our island vacations. So on and so forth.  Let's just say I can see why Todd is an engineer. Very analytical.

Christmas Eve we went to my grandma's house and Ethan got to be with both grandma's and both great grandmas. What a treat! This was very special as well because Todd's grandma came down from Pensacola and met Ethan for the first time. We had just a lovely visit and to see the smile on great grandma's face was so wonderful. Christmas day was filled with more love and lots of cooking since we were having nine people over that day which consisted of my mom, my dad, my mother in law, Todd's grandma, Aunt Caren, Uncle Frank, Jamie my cousin, and Todd and I.  We made lasagna and it came out so delicious! We also made baked ziti, garlic bread, salad, and for dessert my mom brought over an assortment of muffins and my aunt and uncle brought over a pumpkin pie. We opened all of Ethan's gifts on Christmas from Santa and of course he didn't know what was going on but he told me later that he felt lots of love. :)

Tis the season!! See pictures below...

Newborn Photos

Ethan had his newborn photos taken a while back. He was 11 days old when we took these pictures. It was a hard decision on which photographer to go with  - we had narrowed it down to two amazing people but we are very happy with our decision. Real Life Photography (Sandy) did a wonderful job and came highly recommended. We are so very thrilled with the photos. When we got there he was awake even though we fed him before we left. The goal is to get him to be sleepy so the photographer can manipulate him into any position she needs for him to be in. So, in order to get him to that sleepy state, we fed him again and that did the trick. He slept for the 3 hours that it took to get all the pictures. See below for some of our favorites...