You were the cutest bald thing and my best pal. You had such bright, big, soulful eyes. Sometimes you would just lock them on mine and smile and I thought you were teaching me about the eternities. You and I would have little 'conversations'. We took turns 'talking' to each other. I'm not sure what you had to say but I know it was terribly important.
At this time, you were an agent acting upon your world! You could grab things, and you put everything into your mouth. You were getting good at sitting up by yourself but would sometimes face-plant unexpectedly. That led to a few tears and bumps on the noggin. You would laugh and smile and squeal with delight when your daddy tickled and played with you. You were very interested in Colby, and you liked to reach out for him when he was nearby. You began your first communications of protest! You arched your back and began to whine when you didn't like something. You got your first rash- tiny red bumps all over, mostly your tummy and back. They lasted for a few weeks, but went away with the help of Aquaphor. You loved bath time and wiggled and giggled whenever you knew it was about to happen. After dinner your daddy would 'fly' you down the hallway singing the batman song- "Bathboy!" and you'd kick your little legs. You continued to love music and dancing. Sometimes I held you close and danced around on our wood floors. You were starting to push yourself up onto your hands and knees and could maneuver a lot on a big quilt on the floor with your toys. Poor thing though, you were always covered in dog hair, no matter how much I vacuumed!
You were a very drooly boy so I learned how to make little bandana/scarves to keep your shirts clean and dry. I made several in different fabrics. You would play on the floor under the hum of the sewing machine.
You had a few babysitters- aside from your Grandmas and Aunties, mama's friend Chris Garrett watched you, as well as two of the Young Women from Church- Hailey and Emily. I wrote out a page of instructions for them, but tried not to go overboard. It takes a lot of courage for a mama to leave her baby in someone else's care!
Our little daytime routines only lasted a week or two at a time. You were changing so fast that I had to adapt to keep up with you! We helped you into a consistent bedtime routine. You were still waking up in the night to nurse 2-4 times in a 10-12 hour rest. Your daytime naps (2-3) were anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. You learned to sleep on your tummy. Sometimes you would cry and we would help you over to your back. One night you were very restless but I held you and rocked and rocked and you 'sang' yourself to sleep, just like I always did! It was so sweet I had the biggest grin on my face sitting there in the dark. I have dreams of teaching you to sing harmonies like my mama did for me.
Sometimes I would look at you in awe and I couldn't believe that you were here and you were ours.
We made the long drive to Utah multiple times, in the dark of the night. We would leave just before your bedtime and I'd sit in the back and hold your hand and sing you songs and feed you a bottle until you drifted away to dreamland. Then I'd climb like a ninja up to the front seat to be with your daddy. I imagined you hearing the soft rumble of his low voice as we talked quietly about our hopes and dreams for you and our family, and laughed at the silly and wonderful things about life.
Your daddy had a business trip to recruit new employees from BYU. We introduced you to some of our favorite places in Utah. And showed you the places where we met and fell in love. I'm sure you'll get tired of that by the time you are about 5 years old. You also got to meet mama's friend Malia and baby Jack! And your lovely Aunt Emilee was married to Adam in the Timpanogos temple! You were an excellent wedding guest, and wore an adorable bow tie made by your Grandma Krissy. While we were at the ceremony, your great aunts from Kansas and Oklahoma took care of you.
During months 4, 5, and 6, we RAN. A lot. You trained for your first race! Your daddy and I decided to run a half marathon together. So we bought a jogging stroller and brought you along. You loved it. Sometimes you would look around and sometimes you would fall asleep. On Saturdays we would do our long runs on the greenbelt and then play in the park afterward. On weekdays we would get up early or run late at night and bundle you up. One time, we were almost done with our run, and the sky started to look grey and threatening and the wind started to howl. And even though we had a rain cover on your stroller, I think you were scared, so your daddy held you with a blanket draped over your heads while we hurried home.
You and I spent time picking berries and tomatoes in the backyard, and working at the community garden, where we harvested tons of veggies. You were strapped to me and I'd swing you up and down, up and down as we bent to pull weeds. When you got tired of that I'd set you in a wagon on a soft blanket to look up at the sky through the leafy green branches, and I'd hum songs as I worked, so you'd know I was close by.
When you were about 5 months old, we were a little worried that you weren't gaining much weight. We began to supplement nursing with bottles of mama's milk and formula. I think you were just too excited and distracted by the great big world that was suddenly becoming more and more apparent to you. Our doc assured us that you were healthy and fine, but suggested that we could try some solid foods! We were excited, because you had been reaching for our plates and watching us intently, tracking food from plate to fork to mouth. We thought you would gobble up anything we gave you! Your daddy fed you your first "solids"- baby oatmeal cereal, while I documented the occasion. It was the gateway to a lifetime of enjoying the delicious and nutritious. You tried oatmeal cereal for the first time but don't like it much! Over the next month or so, you also tried sweet potatoes and rice cereal and pears. They were all met with a sour face and shaking of the head. You seemed to tolerate bananas most. We just let you explore and touch and taste and didn't worry too much about how much went down the trap. You would make the greatest faces and flap your arms like wings, or bang on the high chair! It was the beginning of a fun and very messy era of feeding.
I love you Ever!
xoxo.
Love, Mama.
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