Christmas Chaos

It's December and all I can think is, where did this year go? Shane helped me go to storage and get our Christmas boxes out yesterday. I had put Blake in his car seat carrier on the ground outside so he could watch us work. I had him all tucked in with a blanket because the day was cool. I looked over to see that he had kicked off both the blanket and his socks and had a huge grin on his face. We had a long talk about wearing all of our clothes when you are outside in December.

We came home with all the boxes, which are currently surrounding me as I type. It turned into a bit of a rough day. Lil' Vance was on the war path. He's frustrated by not having any friends that he can relate to, and as most of us do he takes out his frustrations on the family. Nothing big, just the little stuff, no I won't wear a jacket even though there is frost on the ground outside. It had been building up and kind of had Vance and I worn down.

Later I was trying to set a fussy Blake down in his chair that rocks and vibrates. As I went to put him in it he realized I was going to set him down and thrashed sideways. Unfortunately I didn't have a good enough grip on him and the coffee table was right next to his chair. You guessed it. He got his first hard bump and we both ended up bawling. I've checked and checked and can't find a lump or a bruise on his little head so thankfully I don't think it was too bad.

And on top of everything Kelly had to put down her little Daschund Peanut yesterday. He was 14 years old and his hind quarters had become paralyzed. So sad he was my favorite and I know everyone will miss him.

By the end of the day I had a fussy baby, a worn out husband and 6 branches on my Christmas tree. I've also realized that I left my box with ALL the ornaments in the bottom of the pile at storage.

Thankfully the Lord's mercy is new every day. And today is a new day. My goal for the day is simply to bring order to chaos. We are off to a good start and despite the rain outside I'm hopeful for today. So on that note here are some of the latest and my favorite photos. Hope you enjoy them.


These first three are some fall pictures.


Blake enjoys being able to hold different objects. He loves his puppy toy.


This is a cute outfit a friend sent us. I wanted to get a picture of him in it before he out grows it. And now for Blake's 3 month pictures! I love the smiles!




My little man is now up to 17lbs! He still has his chubby but, he's starting to really get long. All his 3 month pants are high waters. Up to 6 months fit pretty good thankfully.

And now for my three favorite photos!

Busy Growing

It's been a busy couple of weeks. At 2 month's I took Blake for his checkup and shots. He weighed in at 15lbs! The first thing the Doctor said was, "Your two month old is the size of a six month old!" He's a healthy boy!
He had to get his shots, which went pretty good. He did cry for about 5 minutes afterwards, but he has cried a lot longer and a lot harder over gas. I kept infant Tylenol in his system and he seemed to do okay with no major side effects.

The week before Blake's check up was very busy. We started with a visit to Blake's Grandma Dykstra in west TN. It was about a 5 hour round trip. I rode in the back the whole way. Blake would start to fall asleep, but every time we hit a bump he'd wake up. He did pretty good, but I'm not in a hurry to try a long trip anytime soon. Blake did take a really good nap when Grandma was holding him.

Blake's Uncle Von was able to stop by and see him too. I think Blake had a good time hanging out with his Uncle, It was good visit, and I'm glad we were able to make it happen.

The following weekend Blake's Great Granny and Grandpa drove down from IL to see him. It was so nice to see them. Wish they could have stayed longer, but we enjoyed the time we had together. Blake as always stoled the show.

I had bought off ebay a Bumbo chair, and here he is trying it on for size. It was a pretty good, except it was just a little bit of a squeeze trying to get his thighs into the leg holes! Mama loves those chubby little thighs.

These next pictures are just too cute. Vance figured out that Blake became really quiet and alert when he held him up to look out the window.

This one also shows off his horse shoe balding. Blake's not Vance's. He's growing more in, but it looks like he'll have a mullet when he does.

Unfortunately, we had a family cold going around. The week of Blake's Dr. apt I got it, amd the next week Blake got it. It really wasn't a terrible cold, mostly congestion. Still it was no fun for the little guy. Between the shots and his cold his sleep schedule was shot to heck. He just started to get back to his routine, but day light savings time now has him goofed up. His 4:30 is now 3:30.
This Saturday Blake turned 11 weeks old, and weighed in at 16lbs. He's just shy of 24 inches long, and is wearing some 6-9 month onesies!

And for the grand finale the latest cute baby video. Blake is just starting to really laugh, and it is so fun to see! We took this just last week.

Learning new things

Vance found the cord for our video camera so I was able to download them to our computer.  I have a long way to go with my movie producing skills.  Here's the best of the lot.  It's one of Blake from last week.

Sshhh! Sleepy little boy

 Blake has been doing wonderful!  We are continuing to figure out what works, and sometimes what doesn't.  Definitely figuring out his eating and sleeping schedule.  This is helping immensely with what used to be very fussy afternoons.  I'm not so confident as to say we never have a rough day, or won't ever again.  We are just starting to finally have more good than bad days.  Some of it is Blake is starting to have more happy alert times.  However, you'll notice once again the overwhelming majority of these photos are of Blake sound asleep.  I do have some video of him awake and alert, and will post it as soon as I find the cord that connects the video camera to the computer.

As for other Blake updates, he's really putting on weight.  He unofficially weighs in at 13.8 lbs.  We'll have the official numbers Wednesday when he goes for his 2 month check up.  Yep, he's 8 wks old this Sunday.  I'm really dreading his Dr's apt. because of all the vaccinations he has to get.

This was one photo I'm glad I took.  He had fallen asleep on his Daddy's chest and was all curled up.  When Vance laid him down on our bed he stayed in that position, legs tucked up and little bottom stuck out.

So precious! I just love that little face.

He really prefers sleeping on his side or his belly.  This one is of him in his pac n' play all wore out.  I'd laid him across his little whale pillow and out he went.

He spends most of his evenings with Dad, and this is the lights out position.

Curled up with Mama on a rainy morning.  I got Shane to take this one just as he was starting to wake up.

And this one right after he woke up!

And for the finale another "happy" baby picture.  He'd been laying there really content until I got the camera, and then he was all done! 

Fall Showers

It's rained and rained and rained for the last month and a half. We've been mostly house bound waiting for the sun to shine.  Blake and I try to brave the drizzle at least once a day and go for a walk.  Otherwise we've been hunkered down and hanging out, just watching Blake grow. 

This little trick seems to work... sometimes.  I can't ever seem to get time in the bathroom to shower or brush my teeth let alone do anything with my hair. Previously I'd put Blake down either on our bed or in his cradle and run back and forth every time he'd spit his paci out and start to holler.  So I thought I might as well save myself the trip.   

Here he is getting some dad time at dinner time. He's pretty big on snuggles with his daddy.

This was one night where he fussed and cried and fussed some more.  I wrapped him up in our favorite fuzzy fleece blanket, made by Kelly Bauer, and we bounced on the exercise ball until he fell asleep. 

Success at last!

These I took one morning when I got him to actually take a nap without me holding him. I'd propped him up on the pillows on our bed not so he could sleep, but just so he could look around while I picked up.  You might have noticed that my favorite pictures of  him right now are when he's sleeping.  Of course some of it is when he's awake I've got my hands full!  

Personally I think he looks huge in these pictures.

Dad has the touch.  He's our go to man for getting Blake ready to go to bed.

Happy Birthday Blake!!!

1 Month Old Today!!

In celebration of Blake reaching his one month mile marker I decided to take some pictures. My goal was some memorable "cute" baby pictures. You know the typical ones with the smiling cherubic baby. When I reviewed my pictures instead of having captured lots of adorable smiles I realized I had captured the many expressions of Blake. They are, I think, equally adorable. And they really made me laugh. I hope Blake's lack of smiles makes you smile too!

I really wanted to create an old fashioned look, and this little outfit Ms. Kim bought in South Carolina was perfect for it. We struck out on the perfect pose though!

The little bonnet and booties were crocheted with lots of love by Blake's Great Grandma Pat. I thought wouldn't it be sweet to get a picture of him in his little hat and booties? Sadly Blake wasn't too happy with his hat. Yes, that's a picture of him pulling at the strings and frowning. Shortly after this wardrobe change Blake was all done with his photo shoot as lots of crying ensued.

But the day wasn't a total loss. Here's the great smile and perfect pose!!

The Fastest Four Weeks of Our Lives!

I can hardly believe that 4 weeks ago today Blake was barely a couple hours old. These last couple weeks we've been busy watching him grow. And boy oh boy has he ever grown! His outfits that are newborn size no longer fit. He protested hardily when I tried to put him in a sleeper that was a little too snug. I had to laugh because he was too long for it, and was so mad that he couldn't kick his legs all the way out. Don't worry he insisted that I get him out of it quick!

Vance had to go back to work this last week and we've really missed having Daddy at home. We were so fortunate that he was able to take off work for three weeks after Blake was born. But it was still a hard adjustment for all of us. Blake was colicky this week and when his little tummy hurts he has such a hard time sleeping. Thanks to some helpful advice from friends and family we are starting to get naps, and tummy aches figured out.

Aunt Jamie and Uncle Adam suggested running the vacuum in combination with swing time. It does help to quiet him when nothing else seems to work. It is an odd way of bringing some peace and quiet to the house, but it does allow me to get a few things done.

Here Blake helps Mama and catches a ride on the clean laundry.

After all that hard work helping Mama around the house he needed time out to just kick back, put his feet up and relax on the couch for a little bit.

We had a big week with visitors and going visiting.

Wednesday we were invited to Ms. Kim's house for a visit. Before we could go on our field trip we needed to get presentable. Blake had his first official tub bath that day. Prior to that he'd had a couple sink baths which he wasn't to big on, and a bunch of showers which he loves. Turns out this little water baby is very happy in the big bath tub. I love his baby bath that fits inside our big tub. It's softer than the plastic ones and quite cushy as the absorbent material fills with water.

Here Blake is just hanging out and letting his little rolls soak a bit.

His official 'Hey I'm clean pose.'

After bath time we were off to Ms. Kim's house for dinner. Nurse Keisha was there too. She suggested some Mylocin for the bellyaches. The first time we gave it to him he took a four hour nap followed by sleeping for another four hours when we put him to bed. I hadn't seen him sleep that soundly in quite awhile. Nurse Keisha always gives fabulous advice!

Blake was a good boy on our trip. He loved all the hugs and attention, not to mention all the compliments he got. Mama had a good time just getting out of the house and seeing her friends from work. I've missed everyone.

Thursday another friend came to visit. Ms. Kim's daughter Brooke came over to see us for a couple hours, and we had a nice time.

Friday Blake had a big adventure when he helped Mama mow the yard. I snuggled him in his Moby wrap so he could ride with me, and he was asleep within a couple minutes of starting the mower. I put a little cotton in both of his ears, because I was worried the mower might be a little too loud. I don't know that it was and either way it didn't seem to bother him. He only woke up when I shut it off.

Today we had more visitors when my cousin Kinsey and her family stopped to see us. It was wonderful catching up with Kinsey, and great getting to meet Kinsey's husband Eric and their little boy David. They were in Tennessee visiting some of Eric's family and friends and stopped in to see us on their way back to Illinois.
David is very cute and into everything. He found all sorts of stuff to play with in our house. It made me realize how much child proofing I'll need to do when Blake starts walking! I'm so glad they were able to take the time and stop by to visit.

It was a fun week for both of us getting to see everyone!

Looking back a couple weeks, when Blake was 6 days old we took a trip to Daddy's work to go see some friends. Here's Blake with Billie.

Later that day we stopped to see our "ponies". I wanted a picture of Blake next to Blondie. He's going to be quite the little cowboy when he gets bigger.