Sisterly Love

As many know, Ashtyn had a hard time welcoming her baby brother into her little world. Slowly, month by month things have gotten better. We have been asking her for months if she wanted to hold Eli and each time she would say "Maybe later" or "When he gets bigger". Well, finally a couple nights ago, Eli was being fussy and I just casually asked Ashtyn if she could hold him for a minute and she said "Sure!" - Shocked, I jumped at the chance and lied him right in her arms - the minute she was holding him, Eli stopped fussing - AMAZING! I had to of course run and get the camera since this was the first time ever holding him and capture the million dollar shot! It definitely brought a tear to my eye! I hope they always love each other - I know they will fight and argue like all brothers and sisters do, but I really hope they will be close forever and share their lives with each other! I know what a pain in the butt little brothers are, but I think Ashtyn is really going to enjoy having him around - especially to boss around. I love my babies so much - XOXOXO!

Just a Little Guy

FOUR months OLD! Here are Eli's stats:

weight: 12 lbs 2 oz - 6%

length: 25 inches - 56%

We visited the doctor for Eli's 4 month check up. All in all he is doing great, but the doctor said "I guess he is just a little guy" when referring to his low weight gain again. Until he falls off the map completely I guess they don't get concerned, but I have to admit I was a little disappointed with the weight gain, especially since he has been eating like crazy - oh well! As long as he stays happy and keeps developing like he has I guess I should not worry! Once again, Eli got his vaccinations which I think were harder on Ashtyn then him - she started crying right before the nurse gave them and cried "Don't give my baby brother shots - please!" I had to not only comfort Eli, but Ashtyn as well - Maybe next time Ashtyn will stay at Grandmas!

EATING: Eli improved a ton this month with his eating schedule - although his weight is still low he eats a 4 ounce bottle every 2 hours for a total of 30 ounces in a day! We've tried giving him 6 ounces, but he prefers to eat smaller amounts more frequently - I have learned with him that he likes to be on his own schedule so I just go with the flow at the moment. The doctor cleared us for cereal, fruits and vegetables so we may start those soon - anything to fatten this boy up!


SLEEPING: Still a great sleeper! He also put himself on a sleeping schedule this month as well - I know, crazy! Basically, he wakes up around 7:00 has a bottle, plays for 45 minutes, naps for 45 mintues and repeat until around 6:30 when he get a bit fussy. So I throw him in the bath right after dinner - which he LOVES - feed him a bottle and then off to bed around 7:30 or 8:00! I have to admit it is great to have a child whom puts themselves on their own schedule - I never was so lucky with Ashtyn, so he makes it very easy on us, for now anyways.


HABITS and TRICKS: Eli's adorable personality continues to shine through every day and I am so loving it! He is still smiling all the time - and now full on giggles, especially when I change his diaper - who knows what that's about, but apparently he loves to have his diaper off (I am sure only a man can relate to this) He is starting to scream all the time now when he is excited - which is so nice when you are at a restaurant or shopping in Target! He grabs his feet all the time and tries to put them in his mouth. Loves to suck on his hands and is getting better at holding toys and then moving them into his mouth. He has started playing on the floor a little bit, but gets bored quick! He has officially rolled over - both ways - but does not like to be on his stomach at all. He wants so bad to be able to sit up by himself - I think so he can see what Ashtyn is doing all the time and gets so frustrated when he can't do it - so we have him in the Bumbo a lot so he can see the world around him. Lately he has started acting like he wants to hold his bottle - so cute - and at the end I let him play as he takes the nipple in and out of his mouth while dripping milk all over his face!

We had our first head cold this past month, which was a bit rough, but I am sure it was one of many we are going to experience. He also is constantly drooling, so I am thinking teething is on it's way - oh yeah! There is definitely something special between a mother and her son. Eli constantly looks at me with his big brown eyes that just melt my heart every time. And when I come home after work or if he hears my voice on the phone he gets a HUGE smile on his face and kicks his legs - I am so loved! I guess I do have a little mama's boy, but I am quite alright with that.

Robbie came to visit...

On Wednesday my sweet nephew Robbie came to visit while Ariana had a couple hours to herself to be pampered! We had tons of fun - and it was so nice to get some time with him. Robbie is so fascinated by Ashtyn - he just watches her!

I am sure next year at this time these 2 little boys will no longer be sitting here quite like this - I see a lot of running around and tackling in the future! Can't wait to watch them play... We also made cookies, which is something Ashtyn and I do almost every Wednesday, so we had Robbie join us. He did great - sat on the counter sucking on the spatula or banging the measuring cups on the countertop!



Thank you Robbie for coming to visit - we LOVED having you. You are such a sweet, cuddly little boy, Auntie loves you so much! Come visit us soon...

The BIG 3-0 - SURPRISE!

SURPRISE! We celebrated Matt's 3oth Birthday last weekend - CRAZY! I am an amazing wife - not only did I take him to a concert to celebrate his big day, I also showered him with presents and love AND I also threw him a SURPRISE party - you would think he would just LOVE me! Well, Matt hates parties and specifically asked me not to throw one - but how could we possibly pass by his 30th birthday without a huge bash! Well, it wasn't a huge bash, but it definitely was fun - Thanks to my mom for all her wonderful help we threw a Surprise BBQ party with all of our family and friends at my parents house. It was so fun, although Matt did find out about the surprise beforehand - he is a detective and all, but I think he was still shocked by the excitement and all the balloons - another little joke we have - you see Matt and I got in a big fight on Ashtyn's 2nd birthday because I wanted like 100 balloons for her party and Matt refused - so I told him when I threw his next party the house would be filled with balloons, just to be spiteful! - so for his 3oth birthday it was "balloon" themed!

Thank you to all our family and wonderful friends for helping celebrate Matt's 30th!

The fun did not stop there - Matt loves guns - any kind of gun does not matter and lately he has introduced Ashtyn to Nerf guns and they play all the time - Well, I decided for his birthday, from the kids, We would buy him the biggest, best Nerf gun there was on the market and Tah DAH!

He LOVED it and of course so did Ashtyn! She was so excited for him to open it! It has been quite the little toy as everyone who comes over - mainly adults - play with the thing and thinks it is just the coolest thing EVER- nothing like a toy to help you not feel so old on your 30th!

Matt also got some shiny new rims and new tires for his truck - not quite what I would pick for my present - but let's just say he is in LOVE with these! He spent weeks trying to pick out the perfect set and I do say the look very nice! He has been shining them everyday since...

Happy Birthday Babe! I hope the past 30 years have been everything you wanted and dreamed of - job, wife, house, babies - not bad! And I hope the next 30 are even better! I love you so much - you old fart!

Couch to 5K

Yet again I have been inspired by the blogging world - Thanks to Laura and my hair dresser I am now on the Couch to 5K program! I am bound and determined to get my old body back, the one I had before babies - minus the sagging boobs and stretch marks (but we will take care of those later) and needed a challenge to get motivated. Well, I think I have found the ticket - I absolutely hate running, maybe because I don't know how to do it properly... Never have I enjoyed it, but I do know its the best way to get into shape, tone your body, and doesn't require me attending a gym since I don't have a whole lot of extra time these days - I can just run outside, even with my babies if needed! So this program - on paper - is PERFECT for me, as long as I stay motivated. Well, today I started the 9 week program - Not going to lie, I felt like throwing up a couple times, but I did finish the 25 minute workout. This morning, I buckled the kids into the jogger and started down the path behind our house - didn't realise what a windy day it was until I was pushing a double jogging stroller with 2 kids, up a hill, running into the wind - Nothing like a little resistance training on the 1st day! There is a reason I hate running, and that's because it is hard, not quite as comfy as the Eliptical - but for some reason I am optimistic and excited to see if I can really learn to run and actually enjoy it as a workout which hopefully will get me the results I am looking for. Although, I am on a look out for a running path that stays at one elevation a bit more - found out today just how "hilly" our neighborhood is! I have hired Shannon as my teammate, whom I hope holds me accountable and has thankfully signed up for a 5K with me, so I actually have a goal to work towards. That's right I am signed up to run in the Anthem Turkey 5K in Broomfield, Thanksgiving Day - hopefully I will be able to finish the race and then I can stuff my face with turkey afterwards- PERFECT! The marathon is in exactly 9 weeks, so I better stay on track. Wish me luck...

Family Pictures

My mother-n-law absolutely LOVES pictures! And with our family growing, I thought it might be nice to start taking family pictures every year for all of us to enjoy as we watch our little ones grow up and for Sandy to always have! It was a PERFECT day for pictures on the CU Campus, which is just an absolutely gorgeous backdrop for pictures. The session went quite well given we have three kids all under the age of 2! Ashtyn proved to be difficult as usual. She wanted to pick up sticks, acorns or play chase more then smiling or posing for the camera - hopefully the photographer was able to capture some good shots! At one time we were sitting on some steps and the photographer asked Ashtyn to move down a step and over a little and she responded very sternly "I sit right here!" and would not move! Why is she so stubborn? - the terrible twos have officially entered our lives - WELCOME!

The family picture above is only a "Preview" of our several shots, but the rest should be posted soon to view - www.bdawsonphoto.smugmug.com/family

When we got in the car to head home we asked Ashtyn if she had fun and she replied "That was quite an adventure" - Matt and I just looked at each other and had to laughed - it definitely was an adventure! Thank you to my beautiful family for taking the time to create pictures we will cherish forever - Love you all!

Love me some Country...

This year Matt and I celebrate our 30th birthdays! It was always my plan to take Matt to a concert for his 30th birthday since he loves music so much - especially country. So on Saturday afternoon we headed down to Fiddlers Green to watch Brad Paisley in concert with our friends Shannon and Kole! Matt was quite a trooper given the fact he had his Vasectomy surgery the day before - I bought the tickets before realizing this - whoops! We still managed to have a GREAT time like always - even with a little confusion about the concert start time. I thought I had bought tickets to a show that started at 4:00 and so we planned on attending the show and then head to dinner afterwards! Well, I was totally wrong - apparently there was a pre-show at 4pm and then the main show would start at 7:30! Change of PLANS! So we set our blanket out, had some beers and waited a couple hours for the show to start!

Even though the night didn't go quite as planned we had a GREAT time! Enjoying a night away from our kids and enjoying time with our best friends ever! It was also a perfect Colorado evening to watch a concert - which by the way was awesome! Along with Brad Paisley we got see Darius Rucker, the lead singer from Hootie and the Blowfish, so it was a nice surprise to hear all their old hits along with his new country songs. Thank you Shannon and Kole for joining us to celebrate Matt's birthday and of course for "going with the flow" since I have seem to have lost my brain! Happy Birthday BABE! Can't believe you are 30!