Pictures

We had pictures taken two weeks ago by Kellie Larsen, and today they are up to view online! You can see them here, just type in your email address to see them. Be sure to tell me what you think!

Max - 4 weeks/one month

I couldn't decide this week whether to post for Max being 4 weeks or one month old, so I did it in the middle of the milestone days. I took him for his checkup yesterday and he is 10 lb 11 oz and 22 inches long! Since he was born he's gained more than 3 lbs and grown more than 2 inches! He's such a big boy, and so good. He rarely cries, has started sleeping between feedings all night (instead of being awake for hours during the night instead of during the day!), and takes pumped bottles easily. We are so happy to have Max as a part of our family.

The kids each had a chance to help feed him for the first time Sunday. The kids are loving their new baby brother, and are so helpful with him. Isaiah is teaching Max to count (if you see him, ask him about it!) and loves that he holds his finger, and Katie can rarely be heard not saying "I just love Baby Max!" and constantly kisses his hair (our compromise since Katie has been sick most of his life).

More yummy seasonal treats!

Okay, my new favorite cookies (for this time of year, anyway) are the easiest pumpkin chocolate chip cookies you've ever made! I'm all about easy when it comes to cooking these days! Here's the "recipe," if you can call it that when you don't even need measuring cups.

1 spice cake mix
1 15 oz can pumpkin
1 bag chocolate chips

Mix pumpkin and cake mix, then add chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet and bake for 16 minutes at 350 degrees.

Don't ask me how many I've eaten in the last two days . . . I lost track after 10 . . .

I also made Autumn Apple Salad for our "Thanksgiving Dinner" (held last Friday) at my mom's. Very simple but a perfect fruit salad for the season. It was pretty tangy, though, with the Granny Smiths I used, so next time I might try an apple that's a bit less tart.

And a few weeks ago, Adam made the yummiest cookies for his Sunday School class (they are the luckiest kids to get his amazing desserts once a month, and probably don't appreciate how good they have it). I've never been a huge fan of gingerbread, but these Soft Ginger Cookies are so tasty and addicting.

Happy autumn (soon to be winter!) baking!

So tired . . .

It's contagious, this tiredness. The baby is tired and won't fall asleep, which makes Momma tired, who when she reaches the point of too tired to cope, passes said baby off to Daddy, who already worked all night and was probably tired before the baby . . .

Then there's the tired, sick Little Miss who hasn't slept a whole night in her bed in so long neither parent can remember when it happened last. And Big Brother entertains himself all day, avoiding the cranky bunch, by riding his bike with friends, playing Legos, and playing video games, and wears himself out by late afternoon.

We're just so tired . . . lets all go to sleep. (Please?)

2 weeks

As Max is changing every day, I thought I should post some newer pictures of him. Here he is at 6 days old, dressed for church:




Don't you just love "little man" clothes?! Of course I put him in soft sleepers most of the time since he's still so little and new to the world, but there is something special about a baby in dress clothes, looking like a tiny version of a man.


His clothes were still a little big then--not so for long! Yesterday he was 2 weeks old, so I took him for his 2 week checkup at the doctor. They weighed and measured him and he has grown considerably. He is 8 pounds 14 ounces (1 lb 5 oz bigger than when he was born) and 20 1/4 inches (3/4 inches longer than when he was born)! We knew he was growing quickly, and it's no secret he's a little milk man, nursing very frequently and with gusto, but wow!


Yesterday he also lost his umbilical cord stump, so he could finally have a tub bath. I love freshly bathed babies. They are so soft and smell so good, and their hair is so fuzzy. Mmmm . . . Here is Max having his first tub bath:

My List

I saw this on my cousin's blog and was intrigued . . . how many of these things have I done? How many have you done? BOLD what you have done and put it in your own blog. It'll be fun to get to know you too!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Ran a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

I think I'm more surprised at what I haven't done than what I have! I mean, who lives where I do and hasn't seen the Grand Canyon?! And shouldn't everyone hit a home run once in their life? I guess I have some things to do . . .

Halloween

We had a fun Halloween, thanks to preparing ahead. We started out the day by going to see Isaiah in his parade at the elementary school. He was the first one of the whole parade, and was so fun to watch as he "flew" all around the school.




After school, Isaiah, Katie, and I went to a Halloween party with our friends. It was so fun to have "mummy dogs" and all kinds of Halloween treats. We went home for naps, then woke up to carve our pumpkin. One of our pumpkins went rotten, so each kid got to carve one side of the same pumpkin.



After carving pumpkins, we got all dressed for the evening's festivities. Here we are as characters from Peter Pan (Adam: Captain Hook, Rachel: Wendy, Katie: Tinkerbell, Isaiah: Peter Pan, Max: the Crocodile):


Not the best picture for smiles, but we were in a hurry to get to the trunk-or-treat. At the trunk-or-treat we had chili dogs for dinner, the kids played games and won prizes, Adam won the prize for the best adult costume, and of course, the kids trunk-or-treated. We took off and went trick-or-treating at Grandma Bubbles' house and in her neighborhood with cousins (such a fun time, for details, check out Shelli's blog, she and Adam went with them while I stayed at Grandma's and nursed the baby), then stopped at Grandma Linda's before heading home to crash in bed.

What a fun (and exhausting) day!

Max

Okay, I'm slow to get new pictures on here, but here are a few of Max in his first days:

In the delivery room, before even being bathed, Max presented himself as a thumb-sucker. (Please excuse the blur!)

Our little red-head--what a surprise!

The proud Papa. Poor guy hadn't had much rest at this point, but he was still able to smile!

My two boys!

Katie, excited to be a big sister ("I just love my baby brother!").

Max's first ride in the carseat, home from the hospital.