Happy Easter!

Smart boy - go for the candy first!

Easter in Oklahoma included all the traditionals - Easter baskets, bunny ears and a carrot to chew on, church and a delicious dinner. Henry loved diving into his Easter basket, and the highlight was bubbles for this summer! Hard to catch, but fun to watch. We celebrated Passover the day before with a Seder dinner. Actually, the first time I went to Oklahoma with Gabe was our senior year for Easter/Passover celebrations. Henry also enjoyed swimming at a fun pool at the YMCA, got to watch some track and plenty of crawling around in his own playroom. In fact, the first time he took some crawling "steps" on his hands was at the airport. We spread out a sheet, and luckily, had the video camera ready. Henry and I stayed a few extra days to enjoy the Okahoma weather while dad went back to work, but mostly for the grandparents to enjoy him a little longer. True to form, Henry showed off with a few more tricks, including pushing up on his hands on a small box and then pushing up to a stand while holding on. Way to go!

Read more...

Such a happy boy who loves the pool!

It's never to early to start working on your kick


All great swimmers eat their kickboards


I love flying with daddy in the pool!


This weekend the Brown family went swimming again, mostly because Henry loves it so much. We're happy to take him and spend time together as a family, and to find an activity that he loves. He warmed up to the pool and water much quicker this time, and loved it again. He even moved his arms and legs like he was paddling through the water towards us. I'm excited to really teach him to swim in a couple of years. But practicing floating and splashing and adjusting to the water is so much fun now! Even if Henry doesn't want to be a competitive swimmer when he gets to be a bigger boy, I hope he continues to enjoy playing in the water as he grows. I spent my entire high school career with wet hair, dry skin, smelling like chlorine and loving every minute of it; I can only hope Henry enjoys some activity as much - and he can do whatever makes him happy! Although so far, all signs point to a water baby..... :)

This weekend, Gabe was busy with work again, so Henry and I found some additional activities to keep us busy. Downtown, the city had all kinds of activities for kids for Easter, including sack races, Easter egg decorating, basket decorating, wagon rides, making bunnies. And of course, pictures with the Easter bunny. So, Henry and I loaded up, went to the South Bend Chocoloate Company, and had our picture taken with the Easter bunny! Actually, it was pretty hectic, and we stood in line for 40 minutes! I seriously debated when I saw the line - especially since Henry doesn't know the difference - but we needed something to do so why not? I was thinking as we stood there that this would probably be the easiest time, since when he is older and running around it will be more difficult to entertain him. Henry was great. although a little leary of the Easter bunny, so we took the picture together (not that I really wanted my picture taken with the Easter bunny, but anything for Henry!)


This weekend, we're looking forward to celebrating Easter in Oklahoma - decorating eggs, eating lots of yummy food, celebrating Passover, watching Henry eat matza, and spending time with family, who can't wait to see Henry!

Read more...

Baby's First Dentist Appointment!

Henry's first tooth came in around the end of January, at 5 1/2 months, followed a week later by two more bottom teeth, the two right next to it. I originally thought that it was one tooth with an indentation in the middle, since there were two points sticking up. Then, we realized it was actually two teeth, just not square at the top, but angled and jagged. Interesting and different I thought, but nothing to worry about. In fact, I was glad that the two teeth erupted at the same time, since it saved me some teething issues! But, now that the teeth are fully emerged, a week ago or so I took a real close look and noticed that the two teeth are fused. So they are the width of two teeth, with a V in the middle. I called the pediatrician, who recommended a dentist, who wanted to see Henry. Thus, the dentist visit at only 7 months, not 2 years!

Henry was a great patient. He smiled a little for the dentist, let him poke around in his mouth. Basically, the dentist went over all the possible options for the two teeth. Fusion (two become one), gemination (one becomes two), supernumerary tooth (extra), or angenesis (missing) and the possibility of this happening to permanent teeth, which he said isn't necessarily a given. The whole issue is just wait and see what happens, since I decided not to have him x-rayed. We just have to pay extra special attention to cleaning the teeth, since the groove between the two fused teeth is prone to more decay. If it does become decayed, he says it might need to be filled with plastic, but hopefully that won't happen. I can bring Henry in and have the sharp ridge filled down if I want, but unless it becomes a problem cutting him, then I'm going to have the dentist leave it alone for now. And check-ups every six months starting now, not waiting until 2 years or so. So that is al pretty easy, I'm just very curious as to what the situation is under the gums! What will it mean for his permanent teeth and also for more baby teeth to emerge? I did a lot of research before I went, being the geek that I am, so pretty much everything Dr. Johns said was what I expected to hear. It is very reasurring though to have it checked out, and now I don't have to worry at least. Who knew that the girl who did her fifth grade science project on teeth and was a tech for a dentist in high school and started college with a pre-dental focus, would one day have a baby with some interesting teeth issues?

Henry's still working on the army crawl, although now he can hold his arms up for a little bit. Its hard for him to transfer his weight though, so when he tries to move forward, he falls down on his forearms. He's working on dadada - and lots of other baby sounds. I swear the other day he said "ta-pa" when I said tape (as I was taking it away from him so he didn't chew on it), and "ah" when I said apple (which he doesn't think taste all that wonderful yet). It might be coincidence, but we'll take it. At the very least, he's trying out all kinds of sounds and mouth configurations. Sometimes sound comes out, sometimes it doesn't. It's pretty funny when he moves his mouth but nothing comes out! His talking comes and goes, and right now, he's full of things to say.

Henry doesn't care too much for apples, he'll eat them but makes some funny grimaces. But, he does like avocados! Smooth, mild, soft, and another green we can add to the list. He makes a huge mess eating toast as well, which ends up in a gooey, sticky mushy mess. Gross. But cute! Next up on the list - pears, oat cereal, bananas, and prunes.

Read more...

Swimming

I think we've got a future swimmer on our hands! This weekend Gabe and I took Henry swimming at the Rock for the first time. He's been swimming in the hot tub at my house at 2 months and 4 months, but never in a big pool. He was interested in the bubbles, and was fine, but otherwise not that active. But yesterday at the Rock, he was having a ball! Henry splashed his arms, kicked his legs, tried out a kickboard, and chased after some floaty toys. But the most fun was when daddy "tossed" him in the air! (Hands always on the baby though of course). We will definitely be taking him back for more adventures in the pool - and some pictures too. I know everyone is rooting for something different for Henry's future activities - soccer, piano, baseball, running - but I definitely hope he's a swimmer.

Read more...

Henry, what does the sheep say?

Today Gabe had to work so Henry and I went to the 4H Fairground for Agricultural Days, where they had exhibits set up for kids and animals as well. Henry got to see all kinds of animals: baby lambs, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens, roosters, baby ducks, horses, cows, alpacas, bees, bunnies. He even got to pet the baby lambs, baby bunnies, alpacas, cows and horses! It was pretty cute, he would touch the animal and open/close open/close with his hand, and then smile at the person holding the animal. Actually, he was way more interested in smiling at and studying the person holding the animal! Ahh, that's our social little boy! I couldn't get any pictures of Henry touching the animals since I didn't have an extra set of hands, but we did take many pictures of Henry parked in front of the animal cages. Another part of the exhibit included many different stations for the kids, where they picked up a basket at the beginning and then went around completing different activities. They could pick an apple, pick cotton, make the stages of a butterfly with pasta (I'm keeping that one in mind for a future elementary science lesson!), pick a carrot, pick an egg, and plant seeds. It was pretty well done and I'm excited for Henry to go back next year and future years to participate in those activities as well.

These pigs eat as much as I do

Had to take a picture with the John Deere for Dad

Can you say ALPACA?

Mom, do you see the cow?

These bunnies sure are interesting (yes, the brown blobs are bunnies)

Read more...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This past week my mom came to visit and spend some time with us - mostly Henry. Henry loved spending time with his Grandma too. He enjoyed having someone dote all over him. The weather was beautiful so we were able to spend some time walking around campus and eating outside, which was a treat. We stayed super busy as it was nice for me to get some projects that I'd been wanting to accomplish completed while I had an extra set of hands. We painted an easel that we picked up at a garage sale, complete with a chalkboard and a white board. It came out so cute! Henry can't wait to use it. And I can't wait to see him use it.

Henry has been eating all kinds of veggies lately! Last weekend I went on a baby food making marathon; if you look in the bottom of my freezer, you'll find baby food for a month! Henry loves sweet potatoes, squash, carrots and green beans. Well, we're still working on green beans, they're not quite his favorite yet. We think the waxy texture doesn't appeal too much. If I mix it with another veggie, then he'll eat them....sometimes.






Henry's got big hands for a baby, I must say. I've been wanting to make a mold of his little baby hands for awhile now, so we bought some material at the craft store. First mistake - trying to take an imprint of a seven month old. What is the first thing he's going to do? Grab for the impression material! So we attempted to outsmart Henry and take the mold while he slept. Theoretically, a wonderful idea. Actually, couldn't have been a worse idea. Not only did he grab the stuff as we stuck his hand in, even in his sleep, but he also smeared it everywhere. Carefully, gingerly, so as not to wake the sleeping baby, we wiped his hand and tried again. And again. By this time, Henry woke up and was not a happy camper. Never wake a sleeping baby, right? We tried distracting him with toys, food, and with no success. He's covered in the stuff, I'm covered in the stuff, his clothes are covered. I'm trying to keep his hands out of the way of his mouth so he doesn't ingest plaster of paris. A bath is the only way to quickly clean him before the junk dries all over his hands. Meanwhile, the mold is setting up, so we turned to the sure-fire answer - his foot. Needless to say, I have a very cute mold of his foot, and I don't think I'll get a handprint for a year or two! If I only had a picture of the gunk.....

Trying out a sippie cup! Tip it back, Henry


I'm not crawling just yet, but I'm on my hands and elbows!


With St. Patrick's Day comes a celebration of our anniversary. Two years went by so quickly - we've been busy! What a love-filled day to look back on and add so much meaning to a fun holiday. Our wedding song was "The Best is Yet To Come." Both Gabe and I loved the sentiment - our wedding was amazing, but we both look forward to every day together to come. And we both shared our positive outlook with the couples at the marriage retreat - that every day together gets better and better. We've added a joyous addition to our family, and life has never been the same. When I think back on our wedding day, I remember thinking that I loved Gabe so much, how could I love him any more. And yet, each day, we fall more in love and I am over come at seeing him become a father. Happy Anniversary!

And last but not least, Happy 1st St. Patrick's Day Little O' Cutie Pie!

Read more...

Thanks for Babysitting, Uncle Andrew!

Last weekend Henry got to hang out with Uncle Andrew, on midterm break from college. It was nice for him to spend some uncle/godfather bonding time with Henry. He was a great babysitter - gave Henry his bath and bottle and put him to bed. Henry was one happy little guy to have some extra attention.

Gabe and I were busy also that same weekend with leading a marriage prep retreat. We gave two talks on the topics of Communication and The First Years of Marriage. We had gone on the same retreat two and a half years earlier before we were married. It was crazy to think that now we were going to be the ones sitting on the stage, sharing the stories and giving advice. It was fun to sit down together and reflect on these topics as we prepared for our talk, especially since we probably wouldn't have had those kinds of discussions about our marriage unless we were giving the retreat. We really enjoyed the experience, and we think they went pretty well. We were happier with the communication talk and felt like we shared some better stories, but all in all we were excited. Hopefully, we'll be able to lead another in a couple of years.

Henry is a man on the move lately! He's got the army crawl down, and he's rolling and scooting all over the place. We are babyproofing everything this weekend in preparation for the motor man to come! It is exciting to watch him learn to crawl, and he gets better every day. Both Gabe and I were surprised how suddenly things can happen with him and how he can go from one day not being able to do something to suddenly executing like a pro. For example, Henry surprised us both one night when he rolled over. Neither of us were expecting it, and while he had practiced a little, it wasn't gradual in the least. Same thing happened with teeth. One night, I felt the first sharp one poking up whenHenry was in the tub, while even earlier that morning I hadn't felt any thing. It's almost like one day he wakes up and decides this is the day he's going to try something knew. But with crawling, we are seeing the progress more and more each day, so that has been a little different. Life is about to become radically different in a few days!

I'm so lucky to have a crazy Uncle Andrew!



Last Day in the baby tub........................................First day in the big boy tub!


Henry's doing this funny thing when he smiles
where he scrunches up his face. It's really cute!

These diapers look interesting!!

Read more...