Wednesday, March 28, 2012

He's a mover...

When I went to Ian's last doctor's appointment, the doctor commented that I had to keep an eye on Ian because he was a mover. And she is definitely right! Ian loves doing 360s on his play mat. You set him down and he just circles the whole thing...
Ian also rocks his body side-to-side. Every time he does it the girls get so excited thinking he's going to roll but I don't think that's going to happen for awhile yet... I am also surprised at how he has figured out how to move in his woombie. He must move like a caterpillar. Yesterday morning I could hear him over the monitor for about 15-20 minutes just making noises. I guess he was working hard, because he was totally upside down in his crib:

I guess all this exercise is tiring Ian out. Last night he slept 11 hours straight and I actually had to wake him up because we had a 9 AM appointment... I doubt he'll do that again for a long time, but we definitely enjoyed some good sleep last night! It will be interesting to see if Ian crawls and walks earlier than his sisters. We will have to wait and see...

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

First Field Trip

Rachel went on her first field trip last Thursday to Bayou Wildlife Park. Since being away from Ian for a 5-hour stretch isn't possible, I wasn't able to go. My very sweet friend Veronica sent me pictures throughout the day of Rachel having fun on her field trip. It looks like she survived without her mom! And there will be other years to go with her....

On a side note, I still remember my mom going with me on a field trip in 9th grade. She purposely volunteered to drive to make sure I was one of the students who was allowed to go - I think only 2 dozen kids could go and it was high school, so I'm sure the teacher had around 120 students total. And I thought it was okay for my mom to go when I was in 9th grade, so hopefully Rachel won't grow out of wanting me to go with her too fast either! :)

Anyhow, Rachel had fun seeing lots of different animals. She LOVED riding on the school bus - I think that was the highlight of the day for her. :) She said she didn't touch the pigs because they were stinky, but she was brave enough to pet the goats. I think she mainly just enjoyed going on an adventure with her classmates. It's too bad learning experiences like these can't happen more often, but there are budgets to be followed. Here are a few pictures of Rachel enjoying her day:
Happy to ride a pony:
I guess this was a picture of a mad rush to get out of the pig area:

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Meeting the Papas

Ian got to meet his Papa Smith on March 1st:
And his Papa Michaelson on March 2nd:
Ian sure is a lucky boy to have these two grandpas give him love, attention, and be wonderful examples to him. I am looking forward to the coming years and watching their relationships. :)

Monday, March 12, 2012

2 Months Old

Boy, oh boy, do we love this boy! Ian is doing so well. He's growing and changing every day. Ian is 24 inches tall and 12 pounds, 12 ounces. He almost put on 3 pounds this past month! We've ruled out any dairy allergy, which I'm grateful for. He just has eczema like his sisters. I've started using a product I use on the girls and his skin is looking really good. The doctor was a bit concerned about his right arm/shoulder this last visit. She mentioned it looks like nerve palsy, which is something that can heal on its own. So, for now we are keeping a watch on it and making sure a particular little 3 year-old doesn't yank her brother's arm. A lot of times this happens going through the birth canal, but nothing was noticed earlier, so I have a feeling it's happened at some later date. Anyhow, so we're keeping an eye on it and hoping it does heal correctly.

In the past couple of weeks Ian has found his voice. It's so much fun to hear him coo (check out the video below). He is definitely awake a lot more during the day now. Andy's co-workers purchased a play mat for Ian and he has been enjoying that. The girls are still very much in love with their little brother. And he seems to like them as well! He gives them plenty of smiles. Ian still loves lights and fans, as well as being outside. He has become more tolerant of chilling in his bouncy chair, which is nice. As long as he has someone to watch, the girls or I, then he's content.

Ian is also on a pretty good schedule. And if the schedule deviates due to other things planned, he goes with the flow. I guess when you are the third, that's how you have to roll. Ian is still sleeping really good at night - usually only waking up once. My favorite is when he goes until 5 AM and then doesn't wake up until 8-9 AM, which allows me to get Rachel off to school. But 5 AM is stretching it, since it's 8 hours since he's last eaten. But he has done it off and on for us... We are still using the woombie and loving it. Sometimes all I have to do is zip it up and he falls right asleep. I can't tell you how much I love that thing! :)

Ian has brought so much joy and happiness to our home. I love when Audrey says her prayers at night and says, "Thank you for my good day playing with Mommy, Rachel, and Ian". We are definitely grateful for our good days (and if a bad one comes along, we'll take it as well) with Ian.

Happy boy at the park one day:
Happy to see his fan club (Audrey, Rachel, and Mommy) after a good nap:
Cooing away:

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Ian's Blessing Day

Ian was blessed by his daddy on March 4, 2012. It was a very special day indeed! Ian is loved by so many who were unable to be here. But lucky for us, there were some very special people who were able to participate. Both grandpas and grandmas came and the Mackay family. Ian's blessing outfit and white blanket were made by Grandma Michaelson. He looked so handsome and the outfit fit perfectly! The four buttons on the front of his blessing outfit were taken from his grandpas' shirts - 2 buttons from each grandpa. Ian was an angel during his blessing. He was wide awake and smiling (according to the reports from the grandpas). Ian was given a very nice blessing. I am so grateful for Andy and for the priesthood he holds. After being blessed Ian snuggled with me and slept through the rest of church.

The first picture Andy and I have taken together with Ian:
Our first family picture:
Papa Michaelson, Daddy and Ian, Papa Smith, and Uncle Craig:
All the boys who enjoyed the day:
All the girls with Ian:
Papa and Grandma Michaelson with Ian:
Papa and Grandma Smith with Ian:

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Puzzle Time

Audrey has found a new hobby - she loves doing puzzles. I had to take a picture this afternoon of her because this is the first time she's completed this puzzle all by herself. She is quite familiar with the puzzle. Every time she does it she puts the pieces together in a certain order. First comes the princess, then the dog, then the dragon, the trees, the sun, the castle, and finally the pond with the ducks. It's so much fun to watch Audrey enjoy things as she learns and grows!

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Happy Boy

I love when my babies wake up happy. Yesterday morning, Ian slept in until 10:30. Audrey and I could hear him over the monitor cooing and being happy. I checked in on him, ran for the camera, and caught some of his happiness:

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Monday, February 20, 2012

Just like thier mommy....

For Valentine's Day I got the girls baby carriers for their baby dolls. They've been quite interested in seeing me haul Ian around in the baby carrier, so I thought they would enjoy them. Well, I was right! The other day when they were playing, I made them stop to take this picture:
They were playing me! Even though we have a double stroller, it's almost easier to do what the girls are doing above to pick Rachel up from school. Audrey is perfectly content in the stroller and Ian loves the baby carrier. Anyhow, these cute girls each had a smaller baby in their baby carriers and a larger baby in their strollers. Gotta love it!

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Joy School

Audrey has joined a little Joy School group and she is loving it! She would go every day, if she could. We are only doing it once a week right now. I have a fabulous friend who has volunteered to teach until the other two moms with newborns get their act together. I'm hoping to start taking turns teaching in March. On this particular day of Joy School the focus was yellow, so Audrey was excited to wear a yellow shirt, yellow bow, and take Lemon Meringue (a Strawberry Shortcake character) for show 'n tell. Audrey loves putting on her backpack and going to school. And then she is so cute once we get home. She totally mimics Rachel as she pulls all the things out of her backpack that she made at Joy School that day to show me. She loves being a big girl and going to school!