Things I Never Want to Forget

-When I was pregnant, Noah reacted strongly to Josh's voice. He would be still for hours, and then Josh would come into the room and start talking and he'd go nuts. He didn't do this when I talked, or when other people talked, just when Josh did. Like most newborns, Noah was alert when he was born and within an hour or so fell asleep. He slept a ton that night (and didn't open his eyes when I fed him every few hours). The next day, we were so excited to finally see him awake again. I was holding him out away from me so that we could both look at him and he just kind of sat there while I was talking to him. When Josh started talking, though, Noah's eyes got huge and he slowly turned his head to look at him. Noah just sat there, those eyes so big and looking so amazed, like "Wow, that's the guy I've been listening to all this time". It was so sweet to see my two boys connecting like that.

In the hospital

-Noah was just shy of six weeks old. We had seen lots of sleep smiles, but nothing we could for sure say was the real deal. I was holding him as he was falling asleep and looked down at him. We made eye contact, I smiled, he smiled back at me, and I knew for sure it was the real thing. There's nothing in the world that compares to the feeling I get when I see him smile, even though it probably happens thirty times a day now. It never gets old, and I always want to remember that first time.

-A couple of weeks ago, Noah woke up in the middle of the night and was having a hard time falling back to sleep. Not crying, just kind of squirming and grunting. I reached over the side of the bed and put my hand on his chest. His little hand, that he had broken out of his swaddle, moved around a few times until it found mine. He instantly relaxed and fell asleep with his hand resting on mine. It made me feel good that all he needed was to know that his mama was there.

Noah's 3 Month Update

This little guy is growing and changing every day! Some highlights from this last month:

He's smiling a ton and making all kinds of crazy faces. 

We try to get out for a walk every day. I throw Noah in the Baby K'tan and we usually end up coming home with a large Diet Coke. 

Noah took his first road trip to McCall. He was a rockstar on the way over. We won't talk about the ride home. We went with our friends Nick and Amanda and their baby Carter and took barely any pictures.

Trying on his snowsuit for the trip

The drive to McCall

The view from the house we stayed in. So pretty.

• As always, he hates being confined and seems to escape from everything we put him in. Swaddles, clothes, anything that's supposed to cover his hands.
• Still loving "tubby time"
• He's almost out of 0-3 month clothes and just moved into size 2 diapers. Our unofficial home measurements have him at around 25.5 inches and just over 13 pounds. Tall and skinny. Wonder where he gets that from? :)
• He rolled over from his tummy to his back with assistance from a little pillow we have that came with his playmat on 2/6 and then rolled without the pillow on 2/12.
• For most of this month, his longest nighttime stretch was 5-7 hours, but it's just recently increased to 8.5-9 some nights. Naptime's a different story.

Six years ago today....

...it all started. The beginning of our relationship was...complicated. He was fresh off a mission. I was ready to start my first semester of college. He was kind, outgoing, ambitious. The connection was instant.  I was in a serious relationship, but from the beginning I imagined a future with Josh. Marriage, babies, the works. I knew it was right, but leaving a long-term relationship is challenging regardless of the circumstances.

It had been a few months of confusion when Josh invited me to go bowling on Valentine's Day. I told him that my boyfriend, who was working that night, probably wouldn't appreciate me doing something with another guy on this romance-infused holiday. He told me it was with a big group of his friends and assured me that said boyfriend had nothing to worry about. Sneaky guy. We had a blast and to make a long story short, that night was the official beginning of us. We've gone bowling on (or around) Valentine's Day every year since.

Josh is a hard worker. He's an excellent dad. Noah is his little buddy and seeing them together melts my heart. He's curious in a way that sometimes makes me feel like I'm hanging out with a seven year old. He's outgoing and doesn't take himself too seriously.  Josh is also one of the most persistent people I've ever met. If this guy wants something, don't try to stop him.  He would literally do anything to make sure that me and Noah are happy and taken care of.  He worries about us. He prays for us.  He's a good friend, brother, and son. The boy has a big heart.  I'm so glad he's mine.

2007