Best friends

Yesterday Deuce spent the afternoon at the groomer, and I worked, ran five miles, and went to happy hour. Needless to say, we were both exhausted at the end of the day! :) Last night after Nathan went to bed and we finished dinner, I laid down to cuddle with Deuce and check out the Crate & Barrel catalog (I love lusting after all that gorgeous stuff!). Neither of us were able to keep our eyes open for very long! :)

One Year Ago

One year ago today, I found out that I was pregnant!! I was in Washington, DC for work, and the night before on the phone with Todd I told him that I thought I might be pregnant, and was anxious to get home so I could take a test. Todd said that he didn't want to wait for me to get home and gave me the go-ahead to get a test the next day!

I was staying at Leslie and Alex's house, and the next morning I walked to a nearby drugstore and bought the kind of pregnancy test that shows a pink line if it's positive. I took it, and thought there might be a line, but it was so faint that I questioned whether it was really there, or if I just really wanted it to be there! I decided that I had to fork over the extra cash for the digital test, which either reads "pregnant" or "not pregnant" so there's no gray area! However, I needed to leave in order to meet Leslie for lunch downtown. All during my lunch with her I was so antsy and filled with nervous energy--somehow I kept it a secret from her though; I wanted Todd to be the first person I talked to. As soon as we finished lunch, I bolted to the nearest CVS and bought a digital test. My next stop was the National Portrait Gallery, which I knew would have no entry fee and a clean bathroom. :) Sure enough, the digital test readout was "Pregnant!" I practically skipped out of the museum, took a picture of the positive test with my phone camera and sent it to Todd! I then got impatient waiting for him to get the text and call me back (I think I waited about 15 seconds) so I called him! We were both filled with so much joy and excitement and apprehension about this new, fragile life. Nugget was on his way! Just thinking about that day brings me right back to all of those emotions--my first glimpse into the intensity of parenthood.

Now that we know Nugget as Nathan, it is hard to fully wrap my brain around the fact that he was inside of me. Every day watching him grow and change is really magical, especially when thinking about how fast it all happens.

One year ago today: Pregnant!!!


Today: Healthy and happy boy!

Playtime

The first few times that we put Nathan in his little activity center, he just sat and looked at all the toys in front of him. Actually, the very first time he spent most of the time staring at the animals on the seat fabric! :) Now he has figured out that not only can he touch the toys, but he can make them move and make sounds. It is so cool to watch him learning--you can almost see the connection between desire and action finally clicking into place. Here's a short video of Nathan showing off his latest skill.

Barefoot in the Grass

Yesterday afternoon Grandpa John and Grandma Gail spent the afternoon with Nathan. It was absolutely glorious weather--80 degrees and sunny. For the first time Nathan was finally able to wear only a short-sleeved onesie. It was so much fun to see his cute little arms, legs and toes sticking out! Grandma and Grandpa took Nathan and Deuce on a long walk through the neighborhood (this wore Deuce out completely, and gave Nathan a 45 minute nap). Then they all journeyed into the back yard, where Nathan experienced touching the grass for the first time! He really enjoyed it, which my mom said was a change from my first time touching grass--I hated it!

Grandma Gail is still hilarious--she is the only person to date who's been able to get Nathan laughing! :)

Sweet baby toes!

All of the nature exploration made Nathan hungry, and Granpa got to him him a bottle, and experienced Nathan expressing his displeasure with getting burped halfway through! :)

After Todd and I got home from work we all enjoyed some burgers, potato salad and Oberon. We snapped a few family pics on the deck before sending Nathan off to bed.

Rice Cereal

When we visited the pediatrician last week, he gave us the go-ahead to start Nathan on rice cereal when we felt he was ready. Last night we decided to give it a try! Nathan was a little fried from the day, and hungry, so it probably wasn't the best timing, but I guess that's the hazard of being the first child--mommy and daddy do a lot of learning! Nathan did pretty well, though. He slurped the cereal out of the spoon and swallowed it, but got frustrated when we had to break to refill the spoon. He's used to the constant flow from a nipple! I don't think it will take him long to get the hang of it though, and we're looking forward to the adventure of Nathan discovering just how yummy the world of solid food can be!

Here are some pictures and a video for your viewing pleasure! :)

Hanging out with Daddy

Todd and Nathan are such good buddies. Nathan talks more to Todd than anybody else; it's so cute! They were hanging out the other day having so much fun that I had to take some pics to share.

Freddy the Firefly

This weekend Grandma Nancy got Freddy the Firefly for Nathan. He loves it! It has all kinds of things for him to grab and put in his mouth, and he loves all of the bright colors. As you can see from the pictures below, Nathan and Freddy are good friends already! :)

4 months old!

Well, this is a little belated, but Nathan was four months old on Friday. I feel like time is just flying by! Every day Nathan becomes more aware of and interactive with the world around him. He has a whole range of sounds and squeals, and he's mastered the flirtatious smile. He's also expanded his reportoire of cries to include ones that indicate boredom, frustration and general protest of the current activity.

Nathan has learn how to reach out and grab his toys, and stuff them in his mouth.

Basically he just gets more fun every day! :) Here are some updated pictures:

4 month appointment

Nathan had his 4 month well-baby appointment with the doctor this morning. Todd was able to come with us, which was great because it was the first time he was able to meet Dr. Dyk. Nathan was in a great mood, smiling and flirting with all the nurses, quite the little charmer! He had to get his next round of vaccinations which is never fun, but he did well with them, only crying for a minute or so. Dr. Dyk was really happy with how Nathan is growing and said that our little guy is the picture of health. He's still a bit of a peanut, but growing proportionately and gaining weight well.

Here are his latest vital statistics:
Weight: 13lbs, 8.5 oz (25%)
Height: 24" (20%)
Head Circumference: 16.5" (50%)

Nathan's laugh!

Last Friday afternoon, my mom and dad spent the afternoon with Nathan. My mom got him laughing for the very first time!! Luckily both Todd and I were able to get home in time to hear him. It started as a small giggle and eventually we had him belly laughing--the greatest sound in the world! Dad caught a little bit of it with the video camera on his phone, which I have posted below. We haven't been able to get Nathan going again since... perhaps he saves his giggles for Grandma Gail! :)

Hanging out with Suz and Gavin

Suzanne and Gavin stopped by for a little while on Saturday afternoon. It has only been a few weeks since I last saw Gavin, but it's amazing how quickly he is growing--his legs are getting so long! I finally returned all of the maternity clothes that Suz lent me--thank goodness for friends who wear the same size clothes! :) Nathan loved watching Gavin, and Gav had a good time checking out all of the baby toys at our house that used to be at his house!

Happy Easter

Our favorite little Easter Bunny, lounging on the adorable quilt that Grandma Gail made.

Visit from the Andersons!

Becky, Andy, Hannah and Leah were all in town today from Connecticut, doing their tour of the Midwest to visit family and friends. I'm so glad that they were able to find time in the midst of a very busy few days to spend the morning with us! It was so awesome to see them; Becky and I do not do nearly as good a job keeping in regular touch as either of us would like (thank goodness for blogs and Facebook to keep us both up to date on the day-to-day happenings) but when we see each other it feels like it's only been a few days since we last hung out.


I can't believe how much Hannah and Leah have grown! Hannah turned 3 in January, and Leah's first birthday is coming up on Friday. They are both so beautiful and so much fun! Hannah especially was interested in Nathan, and really sweet to him. He just looked at her with big eyes and lots of smiles--she is a pretty intriguing older woman!

We all had a really good time together, and I'm excited to see the pictures that Becky took of Nathan!

Becky and I with the kids: between the two pictures, I think we got everyone looking at the camera at least once, but never at the same time. :)

Todd and Andy with Nathan and Leah

Nathan and Hannah getting to know each other.

Leah coming over to check out the baby her mommy was holding.

Becky taking some shots of Nathan--luckily he's a total ham, so I'm thinking she got some good pictures!

Nathan's not the only ham in the room! Hannah posed for a couple of shots for me in the midst of dancing around the house showing off her new ballet moves (chasse! chasse!).