4th of July Festivities

This 4th of July was super fun (it's one of my favorite holidays). First, I have to mention that the 4th of July is when Billy and I reconnected after years of not seeing each other. It started out with my roommate Shauna introducing me to Facebook (by the way, you owe me for DAYS lost on Facebook!), after which I proceeded to Facebook stalk old friends and, well, old boyfriends obviously! I found Billy and added him as a friend, not knowing if he would add me back - let's just say I was really rude the first time we dated. To make a long story short, we wrote on Facebook back and forth for several weeks, and then agreed to meet at my apartment for the 4th of July. What a romantic holiday to reconnect! I've always loved the 4th, and now I love it SO MUCH MORE. We both had plans that night with other friends so we didn't get to watch the fireworks together, but what's crazy is that when we were driving home from Salt Lake on our wedding night, we saw TWO fireworks shows on our way back down to Provo. I'm so glad we reconnected and I'm SO GLAD I'm married to such an amazing man.

Below are some pictures from July 4, 2009:

I finally got that middle finger shot I've been going for! And isn't his 4th of July outfit cute?? Here Ethan is at our stake pancake breakfast.

Ethan was hot already and was a total drama queen about it!

The smiles I am lucky enough to wake up to every morning!

Here is the parade the kids put on for us - and Draper doing his best to look smooth.

My little man looking serious about his country.

Did I mention Gail came to visit this weekend?

Haha...he decided he had had enough of the breakfast - time to go!

After naptime, we headed out to the middle of our apartment complex for a 4th of July feast! It was so good!

Haha...here is Ethan next to Sophie, who is only 2 days younger then him. He could eat her for breakfast.

And our little family at the end of the day. What a wonderful holiday!
Man, seeing that yellow shirt in a photo makes me want to burn it..

2-Month Chekup!

I can't believe my little boy is two months old - that is just crazy talk! We went to the doctor where they TORTURED him with shots (which was sad), but the good news is: he's growing like a weed! Oh my gosh, I can't believe how much he has caught up since his birth and surgery. I guess babies truly are resilient!

Here are his stats:

Height: 23.5 inches - 75th percentile
Weight: 12 lbs 12 oz - 75th percentile

Well, I always said I wanted a chunker and now I'm getting my wish. Below is a pic of Ethan at two months getting his drink on. I love how he even reclines like an old man! Don't judge the socks, Daddy doesn't always pay attention to the details!

Butte Creek Falls

So I definitely need to play catch-up with our blog! On July 3rd we had the opportunity to go to Butte Creek Falls with some friends, and boy am I glad we did. It was absolutely breathtaking! Although it was about a 45-minute drive and a 15-minute hike, it was totally worth it. It really is one of those places I could just stay in forever....ok, well maybe it would be easier to do that if there was sand instead of rocks. Aside from that, it was perfect. These are some of the many pictures we took while there:

A shot of Billy and I behind the waterfall (how cool is that?).

As you can see it's several waterfalls together.

A pic of Ethan. We would have hiked to another waterfall, but he got his shots that day so he wasn't exactly in the best of moods..:(

Lastly, a gorgeous picture looking at the sun through the many trees surrounding the falls.

I will forever be blown away by the beauty we are surrounded by in Salem. I love Oregon and I am so happy we moved here! Although I miss home, I don't think I could find something like this in Pierre... ;)

Growing like a weed (a big one)

I can't believe how big Ethan is getting...although I can't say it's a huge surprise - he eats constantly! Last week he gained 14 ounces between Monday and Saturday. He's 12 pounds now and shows no signs of slowing down!

The picture below is the picture we took as we were taking Ethan home from the hospital. He is SO SMALL compared to his car seat! You can hardly see him buried in that blanket.

This picture is taken at 7 weeks.

The two pics below are just to illustrate how smiley he is. I know I keep posting stuff like this, but it's so fascinating how his personality is developing so fast!

Haha..this last picture was taken after he took a bath. The side part was not intentional, but it was absolutely hilarious! He totally reminds me of one of my old bosses. Minus the milk dribble on the side of his mouth.

More videos

The first video is something Ethan loves to do. I guess you could call it his favorite past time. His swing is pretty much the only place (other than my arms with something in his mouth) that he is content in, so I stick him in there whenever I need a break or need to get something done. When he is ready to eat again (normally 10-20 minutes later) I start to hear grunting. When I look in his swing, this is a familiar sight - Ethan licking the side of it thinking it is food! It's hilarious and still has not gotten old for me to see.

The second video is just Ethan being his wonderful, cute self. We love this little guy!

Passing the Big One

This is Ethan at 7 weeks doing what my dad calls "Passing the Big One." What in the world does that mean? You might ask. I think you'll figure it out.

First Bath

The last couple days with Ethan have been a blast, full of milestones that are happening almost too quickly! The other day I realized we don't have to give Ethan sponge-baths anymore (duh!), but that we can submerge him in water and let him kick around before bedtime. Well, I got excited about making this a part of his nightly routine, thinking it would be fun for both of us, but also that he might sleep better. Hmmm...

This is Ethan pre-bath time. He kind of liked the freedom of not having a diaper on and being wrapped up in a towel.


This is Ethan when we first put him in the tub. He was really confused at first and didn't know what to do with himself. Then he decided he definitely did NOT like it, and we had to finish the bath as soon as possible!


This is a pic of Billy trying to wash Ethan off quickly and me being a pest wanting to document this momentous occasion! Haha...this picture is just priceless - it definitely depicts how Ethan was feeling at that moment in time!


Also....bedtime was NOT a soothing experience that put him right to sleep. He was up for another 2 hours after that suffering trauma from us sticking him in the bathtub. Apparently the lesson is to not traumatize my child before bed..