Good Night, Sleep Tight....

Bedtime has become one of our favorite times with Cole. We have been reading lots of different books on how to help him sleep well - that is a work in progress. We have also been trying very hard to establish a relaxing bedtime routine. We give him his bath, read a few books, dim the lights, he eats and then we rock. We all love this time together. Cole is going to bed around 9:00 pm and sleeps until about 7:00 am, waking up twice (usually) to eat during the night. I can see him thriving with this routine and I think he really enjoys it as much as we do. It is such a nice way to end our day and wind down. I don't think there is anything more precious than cuddling with a sweet smelling, sleepy baby. Rhonald and I have both realized that reading to Cole is so much fun because we get to remember all of the books we loved as children. Goodnight Moon is an all time favorite for both of us and it is so neat to read it to Cole. Well, all of this talk about sleep is making me even more tired so I am heading off to bed. I hope all of you have a restful night with your family!!!

A Day at the Park With Friends

Cole and Mya

Drew

Owen

Kellie and Ben, Sarah and Laney

A group if girls that I used to work with and I have started getting together one morning a week to let our little ones play together! Really I think it it just as much, if not more, for us than it is for our kiddos. Either way we have a lot of fun talking and watching the kids interact with each other. As you can see there are lots of babies too - they play in their own way and I know we are all excited to see them grow up together and all of the changes they will go through. I love these get togethers so much - I have been blessed with these friends who offer a lot of advice and support. When we moved here from Little Rock I was so worried I would never find friends like I had there but that worry was so worthless....these girls are wonderful and I am so thankful for them!

3 Months Old Today!

Isn't this the sweetest face that you have ever seen? I am so blessed to be able to look into these big blue eyes each and every day. This was taken this morning when Cole woke up. He is always in such a great mood when he wakes up and after he eats! Cole is 3 months old today and growing like a weed!!! He is starting to really enjoy playing in his bouncy seat, his swing and on his tummy (sometimes!). He is talking to us more and more each day which is so cute. He thinks "raspberries" on his tummy and his cheeks are super funny. He enjoys going from room to room with me as I do things around the house - I think he enjoys the lights and the new sights he gets to see. He is napping well and sleeping pretty well at night. He really loves to be with Rhonald when he gets home from work---I know that melts Rhonald's heart and can turn any bad day into a good one. He still loves his bath a bunch too. He now has 4 teeth buds in his little mouth - 2 on the top and 2 on the bottom. We estimate that Cole weighs 13-14 lbs but are going to officially weigh him tomorrow at the clinic where Rhonald works. Well, that was just a really quick update on our little prince on his big day!!!!

A Huge Sap

Happy Birthday Cole - January 11, 2008

Cole at 10 1/2 weeks

Ok, I learned this morning that I am not going to do well with Cole growing up! Cole has been wearing 3-6 month clothes for several weeks now and today I took a second to finish packing away all of his 0-3 things...clothes, blankets, hats, socks, cradle bedding. I thought it would feel great to have some more room in his dresser (which it does) but as i folded each little item I felt a little sad. I think I remembered each and every time he wore a certain outfit, a memory made, never to be forgotten. I saw the little receiving blankets that he loved to be wrapped in and thought about holding him that first week we had him home. Cole is almost 3 months old and it has been a fabulous 3 months! I cherish all of the memories that we have made together and look forward to making many, many more memories in the future!

Hey, Who Is That???

The other day I was walking by a mirror in our hallway and noticed Cole seeing himself. He simply stared and stared at the little face he saw in there and then he started smiling at it, as if to say "hi there!" We were given a little mirror as a baby shower gift and had not used it yet simply because he was not really paying attention to very many things. I pulled it out yesterday and laid him in front of it and he was thrilled!!! He just kept looking at himself and then up at me and then back at himself! It was so cute to watch! We played with it again today but this time I sat him up and he could see himself and me. He seemed to really like that and smiled quite a bit when I would make faces and funny sounds. What a ham!!!!

Another thing we are currently working on is getting Cole to sleep in his crib and do so without putting up a fight! We are making a lot of progress in this area and I am so proud of him - and of Rhonald and I for not giving up. He is napping in his crib every nap and only fussing for his 3:00 nap. For some reason that is a hard one for him. For the past 3 nights he has only woken up one time to nurse and then goes right back to sleep. That in itself is a huge gift to me - I have been praying about that for a few weeks now. He is really learning that being in that big crib is ok and that, for whatever reason, makes us very happy!

Lunch With The Ladies

Cole and Audrie

Every Wednesday afternoon Emily, Rachel and I have a lunch date. It is so nice to get together with these girls and talk about all things important...what diapers we like, who should win American Idol... you know, the important things. It is always an interesting lunch with Cole and Audrie around. Sometimes we sit to eat, sometimes we stand...sometimes we eat together, sometimes at different times but one thing is for sure, we always have fun! Audrie was born the day Cole turned 3 weeks old and it has been so fun watching them grow together. Ben, Emily's son, is due to arrive around May 20th. We are all excited to have him here to play with too. It is wonderful to be able to share such a fun time with our friends and create friendships for our children as well.

A Lazy Saturday

playing with Daddy

sweet boy!

Mommy is so funny!

Rain, Rain go away....or maybe not! This weekend has been very dark and rainy but it gave us a great excuse to stay inside and relax as a family. Rhonald finally had the entire weekend off which was awesome for all of us! I think Cole really misses Rhonald when he is at work so it was great for them to have some time together. Cole is growing up so fast and sometimes I feel guilty because I get to be with him so much and I never have to miss anything. I know Rhonald would not have it any other way but I also know that he cherishes days like this one very much. We all just laid around watching movies and the NCAA basketball tournament, playing and napping. I am so thankful for the rain today - it helped us to slow down and focus on our family which was amazing!

Cole was full of smiles and funny faces but whenever we try to capture them on camera he gets very serious...he stares at the camera wondering what in the world it is. He is laughing out loud now and he loves when we raise him in the air above our heads and make faces at him. Cole is starting to enjoy looking at the pictures in books when I read to him ... the colors fascinate him so much. He still loves his activity gym. He has been drooling a ton and chewing on everything (his hands, our hands, etc) - we recently noticed two small pearly white tooth buds in his little mouth. He is so young but according to my parents I had 3 teeth at 3 months of age. He is not bothered by them and we hope that lasts! He is awesome - we are so blessed to have him!