Little Jake is 3 Months!

I can't believe my little baby is already 3 months old!  And what I really can't believe is how fast he is growing and learning things.  He is starting to notice a lot more than he used to and loves looking around.  I had no idea he would already be able to imitate faces we make, and he's starting to make noises that sound more and more like talking.  I was singing to him earlier today and he started cooing like what I was singing.  It blew me away.  I had no idea how smart he would be so fast!

Jake is sleeping through the night like a champ!  I figured out that he has to eat at least 25 oz of formula during the day, and then he's good for the night.  We offer him 5 oz a feeding 6 times a day- 7am, 10am, 1pm, 4pm, 7pm, and 10pm.  He plays and takes naps between each feeding and is so much fun to be around!  He is the world's slowest eater, though.  It takes him a full hour to eat each time (making a whopping 6 hours of feeding time every day...).  Sometimes I have to stop feeding him before he's done because the formula is only good for an hour after they start drinking.  During those hours I talk to him, tell him about anything and everything, read to him, and sing to him.  It is a long time, but I enjoy just watching him and taking in every moment.

His smile melts my heart, and he is starting to smile so easily!  Even when Andrew or I just walk into the room he lights up and gives us a huge, heart-warming grin.

His favorite thing to do these days is play on his little gym.  We tell him he's working out, and he seems to take that seriously.  You should see him kick at the piano keys and punch at the toys.  He's figuring out how to grab onto them as of late and seems to be enjoying that.

His least favorite thing is tummy time.  He doesn't seem to get it, and instead of lifting up his head and strengthening his muscles, he lifts up his bum, pushes his legs, and scoots forward.  Tummy time always comes with crying and spitting up everywhere.  Poor kid! 

This past week Jake and I LOVED having Andrew home for spring break.  They spent a lot of time together.  It's easy to see that Jake adores his dad as much as Andrew adores him.

Here are an abundance of pictures for his grandparents and our family who don't get to see him too often.  Yes, he's the cutest little boy in the world :)  Andrew and I seriously ADORE him!

Jake meets the extended family

This past weekend Andrew and I took Jake and our dog Kyle to my family's house.  We had a lot of fun, going on walks, shopping, and watching basketball.  Jake got some new sunglasses so the sun wouldn't shine in his eyes so much.  We've actually been going on walks every day now that the weather has been so nice- in the 80's the past couple of days!

While we were at my parent's house my extended family drove down to see Jake again, and some of them to meet him for the first time.  It was fun to see all of them, and Jake liked meeting his great aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Here's Jake with my Uncle Jim, who calmed him down and put him right to sleep.

 Here he is meeting his Great Aunt Laura and Grace

 Jake liked being held by the beautiful Grace and Paige

 Hanging out with Great Grandpa

 He loved Great Uncle Tom and Aunt Carolyn!

 Great Grandma feeding Jake his bottle

It was a big weekend for our little guy, but he very much enjoyed it, and so did we!

HAIR!

When I was pregnant I heard horror stories of girls' hair falling out in clumps their babies were born.  11 weeks after Jake came along I thought I was maybe home free- I had hardly lost any!  But just a couple days ago it began...it's falling out like crazy!

And I'm not the only one losing hair- Jake's is coming out too.  Plus he rubs his head back and forth in his crib all night and during the day when he's playing on his back.  Not only is it falling out, it's rubbing off!  To top of his look, he has thick, long hair right at the bottom.  Can you say mullet?  I want to cut it but he's just 2 1/2 months old.  Good thing babies can pull off hairstyles the rest of us can't...

I know this isn't regular hair, but Jake's eyebrows are getting thicker- they look EXACTLY like Andrew's!

Happy Birthday Kim!

Today is my little sister Kim's 23rd birthday.  I am so glad to have her as my sister- I absolutely adore her!  She is one of those people that lights up a room when she walks in- beautiful, funny, vibrant, and always so nice to everyone.  Even though she is 2 years younger than me, she has always been a great example to me and I have always looked up to her.

I remember when I was leaving for college being so sad to say goodbye to her and then how happy I was when she decided to come to BYU as well.  Again last year I was so sad to say goodbye as Andrew and I left Provo, UT for Columbus, OH.  I'm completely ecstatic again because she and Darrell are moving to Ohio this summer!!!  Darrell just accepted an offer from Wright State where he'll get his PhD- just 1 hour away!  I have so many great memories with Kim, and I am so excited for more to come!

Here is Kim, her husband Darrell, and Jake at about 2am the night  he was born.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIM- I LOVE YOU!!!

Going on a walk

Yesterday Andrew didn't have school because it's final exam week and his tests are all scheduled for Tuesday (today) and Thursday this quarter.  As we were eating lunch we noticed it had stopped raining, so we decided to take the baby and dog for a walk.  We finished our sandwiches, got Jake all ready to go, put the dog's leash and our shoes on, and started the trek down 3 flights of stairs.  After the whole ordeal of getting ready it was raining again!

Today was more successful.  What a beautiful day!  It was nice to get out for awhile and enjoy some fresh air and sunshine (not rain!).

All Smiles

Jake LOVES when we make his legs run or arms move around.

We also found a good sale at Babies R Us for a little gym with a piano at the bottom.  This kid LOVES to kick his legs around!

He has also become quite the champ at spitting up all down himself, us, and our furniture.  He's very sneaky at getting it around his burp cloth!

During the day when I work I've been laying him on the coolest quilt that my cousin Megan made for him when he was born.  He loves that and will smile at me when I lean over and talk to him.

Thankfully work has continued to go well for me.  Andrew and I have been so blessed!  Andrew's last day of classes for the quarter are tomorrow and finals are next week.  After that he has a week of spring break- his first since high school because BYU doesn't have spring break.  We're both looking forward to the fun to come :)

Our 2 month old cutie!

I feel like  lot has happened in the past week or so! 

It was 69 degrees one day last week, so we took Jake on his first walk- he looked around and seemed to enjoy himself the first half, but crashed and didn't see the second part at all.  Our dog Kyle had a great time, and it was nice for Andrew and I to get out and just chat.

Jake is becoming more and more fun by the day.  He now smiles easily and often and laughs when he's particularly happy.  Unfortunately as soon as the camera or video recorder come out he becomes mesmerized by them and stops smiling to try to figure out what's going on.

He still doesn't really enjoy bath time, but he's at least tolerant of it.  I love how he smells when he gets out and how cuddly he is- I always wrap him up in a fuzzy blanket and snuggle with him until he falls asleep after his baths.  I very much enjoy bath days!

I can't help but take pictures of him sometimes because he looks so cute and I know he won't be like this forever.  I really can't believe how fast he's growing!

On Thursday my brother-in-law Darrell came to visit Wright State University in Dayton, which is about an hour from Columbus, where we live.  We met up with him for dinner at Texas Roadhouse just across the road from campus.  It was really good to see him and fun for little Jake to spend time with his Uncle Darrell.  We're REALLY hoping he accepts the offer for graduate school here.

Our dog Kyle has really taken to Jake recently.  He always wants to be right next to him.  Jake notices him sometimes and his eyes get really big.  I think these two will be the best of friends here in a year or two.

Jake had his 2 month appointment Thursday and he is pretty much an average-sized baby.  He is 22.8 inches long (43rd percentile), 11 lbs 12 oz (50th percentile), and his head circumference is 15.75 inches (51st percentile).  He screamed for a second with his shots and was pretty much fine the rest of the day, thank goodness.  We did give him infant Tylenol and he slept a ton.  I'm glad he didn't cry too much or have any reactions on his legs where they stuck him.

With him being such an average sized baby, I would guess his clothes would fit just right in the time frame for which they were intended.  He's outgrowing his 3 month clothes already and some of his 3-6 month clothes are fitting perfectly.  I love his giraffe pj's.

Yesterday was Andrew's 25th birthday (and our dog Kyle's first birthday)!  I'm glad Andrew is such a good sport because I bought Toy Story party hats, plates, and cups for the big occasion.  I tried to find Harry Potter stuff, but they didn't have it anywhere!  My parents came Saturday and spent the night here.  It's always fun to have them come- my mom spoils us by cooking, cleaning, and waking up in the middle of the night with our cute little squirt.

 Life as a family of 3 has been great and keeps getting better as Jake becomes more and more interactive.  I can't believe he's already over 2 months old!